


Art and Admiration

by P4RTYG0BL1N



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Childhood Friends, Developing Friendships, F/F, F/M, Female Friendship, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Hope you like, I'm not kidding about the slow burn part, Implied Sexual Content, Light Angst, Light-Hearted, Male-Female Friendship, Mild Sexual Content, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Pining, Romantic Friendship, Self-Indulgent, Self-Insert, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Swearing, Temporarily Unrequited Love, Underage Drinking, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love, good luck, this is so self indulgent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:15:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 27,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26643598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/P4RTYG0BL1N/pseuds/P4RTYG0BL1N
Summary: Mako and Bolin's childhood friend Y/N follows them through their adventures in Avatar: The Legend of Korra, while Y/N will also have some adventures of her own, building friendships or more with each member of the New Avatar Gang. She's a waterbender with a knack for water colors, but a certain muse is always just out of her grasp...
Relationships: Bolin & Korra (Avatar), Bolin (Avatar) & Original Character(s), Bolin (Avatar) & Original Female Character(s), Bolin (Avatar)/Original Character(s), Bolin (Avatar)/Original Female Character(s), Bolin (Avatar)/Reader, Bolin/Eska (Avatar), Bolin/Korra (Avatar), Bolin/Opal (Avatar), Korra & Asami Sato, Korra & Mako (Avatar), Korra (Avatar) & Original Character, Korra (Avatar)/Original Character(s), Korra (Avatar)/Original Female Character(s), Korra/Asami Sato, Korra/Mako (Avatar), Mako/Asami Sato
Comments: 7
Kudos: 56





	1. The Beginnings

You lived a relatively boring life. Your father runs a pottery store, which you’ve helped him run since your mother left. He was talented, but an artist's income wasn’t reliable and once the baby joined the picture she left, leaving him and Y/N. Named after her mother, ironically. He was an amazing artist, an earth bender with a precise hand when it came to bending the clay. His artistic soul and kind heart raised an artist with similar talents.  
You’re a water bender, having learned to use your unique connection to the element to create water colors, and to help glaze your father's pottery. Your father was proud and nothing but supportive, though he’s always wanted more for you than his little shop.  
But right now, You’re currently 10, and sweeping the floors after close, when you hear the familiar sound of clay smashing against the ground, shattering to pieces. You bravely walk into the back room, broom brandished, ready to attack. At the doorway, you hear whispers further in the room.  
“Bolin! We’re supposed to be quiet!”  
“I’m not the one talking!”  
“But you are the one breaking things!”  
The voices sounded surprisingly young, and that discovery eased the stress and fear of potential burglars. You decide to make your presence known and step out from the doorway.  
“Hey! What’re you doing in my shop?”  
Both kids turned wide eyed at this girl, brandishing a broom in her pajamas. Both sets of kids had the same thought.  
“They’re the same age as me!”  
Bolin and Mako, ages 9 and 11, look back at each other, then back at you.  
“What do you mean your shop?” Mako questioned.  
“Yeah, you’re just a kid!” Bolin huffs.  
“I help run it dummies, so it’s my shop. Now what are you doing here?”  
This goes back and forth for a couple of minutes, neither group answering any questions, and getting louder back the second.  
So loud, in fact, that your father wakes up and goes down to investigate.  
And the scene he walks in on is something he’ll never forget, his daughter wielding the handle of a broom like a dangerous weapon, and two confused and kind of scared boys around the same age standing in the remains of a shattered pot. Y/N in her pajamas, a pair of turtle duck slippers on her feet, and her hair in the best braids he could do. Which weren’t great. And these boys, dirt on their faces, messy hair and ratty clothes, the taller of the two wearing a bright red scarf much too big for him.  
The next scene is something the other three would never forget. All three of them being scolded by your father in the studio, hands behind their backs.  
“I don’t know who you two are, but breaking and entering my place of business and home, and breaking one of my unfinished projects? I should call the police right now!”  
You smirk at that, and the boys look at him worriedly. Serves them right for waltzing I’m and breaking stuff.  
“And you, you should have come get me the second you heard something, I don’t know what I would’ve done if you had gotten hurt!”  
The smirk is quickly erased. Your father sighs, and puts a hand on his forehead.  
“Now who’s hungry?”  
He began ushering the three of you up the stairs, and seats you at the kitchen table, as he starts clambering around the kitchen, preparing to cook. None of you know how to react to what was going on, why the police weren’t whisking them away in cuffs. You stand, and go to grab your father and take him to the other room. Once you’re sure the boys can’t hear you, you question him.  
“Dad, why didn’t you call the police?”  
“Hon, look at them. They’re your age, and dirty and messy, and obviously hungry. People do what they need to do to survive, and they’re obviously in the need for some help. What do we do when people need help?”  
You look at the ground and fiddles with your hands.  
“... we help…”  
He smiles at you, that smile that says, I’m proud of you but not surprised. He places a hand on your head and moves it like he’s trying to ruffle your hair, but it’s more just him weirdly rubbing your braids.  
They ate, they talked, He got the boys set up with extra food and new clothes, a couple of yuans he could spare. He offered to set them up some beds, but they declined. He let them know that if they ever need help, or need to work every now and again, they were always welcome back.

That night was the first of many encounters you would have with Mako and Bolin, as you all slowly but surely became attached at the hip. Dad would always feed them, and you found that you liked playing with them, as rowdy as they were. You all went through several experiences that made you grow closer, from friends to family.  
When you all met you were nine, ten and eleven.  
When you were ten, eleven, and twelve, You and Mako dated. Well, dated in the way that children date, you lasted less than a month. If remembered correctly the fight that ended it all had something to do with steam buns?  
When you were eleven, twelve, and thirteen, Bolin found a wounded fire ferret. Mako, Bolin, and you spent a couple of months taking care of it, which Bolin dubbed as Pabu. This experience helped you begin learning how to heal with her water bending.  
When you were twelve, thirteen, and fourteen, Bolin and Mako met a fire bending girl, and began fighting each other and competing for her attention. You had never felt jealous before, so when you kept getting irritated and picking fights with the both of them, you was just as confused as they were. The fire bending girl was allergic to Pabu though, and that pretty much ended that, at least on Bolin’s side of it.  
When you were thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen, you found out about their dealings with the triads, leading to one of the biggest fights you’ve ever had. Mako and Bolin spent some time apart from you. You all thought their friendship was over, but a bad job leads Mako and Bolin back to your door, Bolin wounded. You quickly made peace as you began working on healing Bolins’ wounds. This is when you realized your crush on Bolin, having finally seen him after almost five months. They both swore to never work with the Triads again.  
When you were fourteen, fifteen, and sixteen, they decided to start training to be pro benders, to help earn yuans since they quit the Triads. Turns out you aren’t really cut out for that sort of thing, a little too sloppy and reckless when it came to fighting than others. But the banner you painted to cheer them on when they tried out was awesome. You never missed a game.  
When you were fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen, Mako and Bolin were able to move into the gym above the pro bending arena, and you helped them decorate. Much to your dismay, they were determined to put an old water color you did of them when you were like, thirteen on the wall. You spent almost all of your time away from the shop at their place.


	2. The New Teammate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y/N meets someone new, and has to quickly get used to her...

You’re sixteen, seventeen, and eighteen now. You’re the Fire Ferrets number one fan, your banners cheer them on, and motivate them to train, you heal them when they get hurt. You don’t really get along with their water bending team mate, Hasook, but since you can’t play very well you can’t really get rid of him. He’s just unfriendly, you tried to be his friend, he is just not a fan. And you know what? Feeling’s mutual. But you suck it up for Mako and Bolin, though if Bolin brings another stupid fan girl to the equipment room you might lose your mind. You try not to be irritable and jealous but Bolin currently stands over to the side talking to another one, waving his charm around like it’s no big deal. He doesn’t know it hurts though, he’s just being Bolin, you know, lovable. You hide your hurt under attitude. He’d never do it on purpose, and he’s a little too oblivious to notice, so you’ve gotten away with pining from afar. His much more observant brother on the other hand, noticed a long time ago, but swore an oath of secrecy under threat of death. You’re sitting on the other side of the room, staring at the two of them distractedly.   
“Y/N.”  
Mako’s voice brings you back to Earth, and you get back to healing Mako’s bruises.  
“I’m sorry Mako… I’m just a little distracted.”  
“I know, are you gonna be okay?”  
“Yeah, she might not be though.”  
You and Mako watch Bolin and the girl leave the room, as she laughs at something he said.  
“Y/N. You should talk to him, that’s the only way you’re gonna get through his thick skull.”  
“... I just wish he’d stop bringing all those girls around.”  
Mako puts a hand on your shoulder.  
“...Should I talk to him?”  
“If you can get him to stop without outing my stupid crush, then sure. But otherwise I just wanna get some steam buns and forget about it.”  
“I can definitely do that.”  
You smile at him, and he smiles back with the most awkward smile. Emotions are such a foreign topic for him, but he does try, you’ll give him that. 

A week later.  
You and Mako walk to the equipment room, and you’re wringing your hands in stress. You almost get as worked up as Mako about their matches.  
“Where is Bolin? He’s never this late…”  
“Why are you so stressed, I’m the one that’ll have to forfeit without him.”  
“Mako, I know, I’m just worried. He can be a little spacey but this is important to him, and you’re so close to the championship…”  
Your words are stopped as you both walk in, and see a beautiful waterbender you’ve never seen before, and you can feel your face instantly fall. You quickly compose yourself before Bolin sees. Mako looks between Bolin and this new girl, and you, and approaches the two.  
“Name’s Bolin, by the way.”  
“Korra.”  
Mako turns to Bolin and tries to get his attention.  
“Psst, Bolin.”  
“Yeah?”  
You try and busy yourself nearby, trying to look like you definitely totally are not eavesdropping.  
“I told you, you have to stop bringing your crazy fangirls in here before the matches. Get her out of here.”  
So Mako did talk to Bolin, though with little success it seems. Damn.  
“Come on, Mako! Right, look, I kinda promised her she could stay,”  
Bolin turns to look over his shoulder at Korra, and his bright smile might as well have punched you in the face. Mako glances at you and grimaces for your sake. “But man, I got a good feeling, there’s something special about her! I know it!”  
Bolin begins to bring Korra over.  
“...something special…” You find yourself whispering to yourself in a mocking tone.  
“Come here, I want you to meet my brother, and our best friend. Mako and Y/N”  
Korra holds her hand out to Mako.  
“Mako? Wow, I heard you playing on the radio.”  
Mako ignores her outstretched hand.  
“Come on, Bolin, we’re up.”  
Korra looks down at her rejected hand, and frowns.  
“...Or I guess I could meet him later…”  
“Yeah, sorry about that. My brother just gets real… focused before a match. Okay, I gotta go, wish me luck! Not… that I’ll need it.”  
And Bolin rushes out to catch up with his team mates.  
“Good luck! Knock ‘em out!”  
You walk up to join Korra by the railing to watch the match.  
“ And your name was?”  
She’s turned her hand to you now. She seems sweet, and you can’t stand it. But you grab her hand anyways, and give it a firm shake.  
“Y/N, Y/N is my name.”  
“Nice to meet you Y/N! You’re so lucky, I bet you get to watch pro bending matches all the time!”  
“Haven’t missed a game since they started.”  
You can’t help but smile a little, she does seem really nice… Damn you and your friendly nature. The announcer comes out and introduces the team and the players. A particular section of the crowd cheers when Bolin is announced.  
“Man! He has quite the following!”  
You sigh, roll your eyes, and lean against the railing a little more.  
“Yeah… he really does…”  
You and Korra then stand there and cheer together as you watch the match between the Fire Ferrets and the Tigerdillos. Cheering with each hit, and groaning with each miss. Both grimace and flinch when Mako gets hit square in the chest by an earth disc. Once Hasook is knocked off the podium,and makes his way back up to the equipment room, you begin looking him over haphazardly for injuries.  
The next round starts and you’re lost in the game as you watch the elements flying back and forth, the players dodging and ducking attacks. You’re almost biting your nails as the Tigerdillos advance forward, but the Fire Ferrets pull through. The final round begins and almost immediately Hasook is hit and bumps directly into Bolin! You watch them try and untangle but they just aren’t fast enough, and both get sent into the water. It’s all up to Mako now, as Korra clutches her own head in suspense, and you get up to inspect both boys for injuries.  
“Psst… hey Y/N…”  
You begin healing a growing bruise on his upper arm.  
“What’s up Bolin?”  
“What do you think of Korra?”  
You try not to let your disappointment show in your voice.  
“She’s… she seems nice from what I can tell.”  
“Sweet!”  
You finish up his bruises as the final bell goes, and Bolin jumps up to celebrate the win with Mako on the podium along with Hasook. Bolin is then the first to run back.  
“Woohoo! Yes!” He turns to Korra, and takes his helmet off, attempting to act casual, “So, what’d ya think, Korra? Bolin’s got some moves, huh?”  
You roll your eyes, but they widen as you see Korra grabbing him by his shirt collar, almost lifting him off the ground.  
“What did I think? What did I think? That was amazing!”  
She then pushes Bolin, and she probably meant it playfully but watching him stumble back has you mad. You’re about to go say something, when Mako and Hasook walk in, arguing.  
“You did more harm than good out there. You almost cost us the match!”  
Hasook rolls his eyes and takes his helmet off.  
“We won, didn’t we?”  
“Barely!”  
“Get off my case pal!”  
Hasook throws his helmet to the ground, and then slams the door on his way out. Typical Hasook. Mako watches after him, shaking his head.  
“Useless.”  
As Mako stands there, in his own head, Korra walks up to him.  
“You guys were incredible out there! Especially you, Mr Hat Trick!”  
He barely acknowledges her, almost rolling his eyes.  
“Oh, you’re still here?”  
Oof. Korra’s expression goes from excited to irritated almost immediately.  
“Oh, you’re still a jerk?”  
You appreciate what he’s doing, but maybe should talk to Mako…   
Bolin and Korra start talking, and you go over to Mako who’s taking his gear off. You lower your voice so Korra and Bolin don’t over hear.  
“Hey, Mako… you’re not being cold… for me are you?”  
He kind of rolls his eyes, but the tone is different from earlier, more lighthearted.  
“Yes and no, I would do it for you, but you’re not the only one annoyed by all these excitable girls in here, it’s starting to get crowded.”  
He puts a hand on your shoulder, and gives you a small smile.  
“I know how you feel about it, but I just want him to take this more seriously, it’s our livelihood.”  
You nod.  
“Ab-so-lutely!”  
If it's possible to roll your whole body, Mako does it.  
“Right now? Come on, Bolin.”  
Oh you weren’t even listening to their conversation. What did Bolin get himself into? He says something too quiet to hear to Korra, and then bolsters his voice back up.  
“Yeah, I could show you the basics! I’m not sure how my earthbending would translate to your waterbending, but we’ll figure it out!”  
Man he is so cute.  
“Won’t be a problem. I’m actually an earthbender.”  
Oh you do not trust that face, she has a look in her eyes that just says trouble. You look to Bolin, whose face is tinged red as he falters.  
“I’m sorry, no, no! I didn’t mean to assume. ‘Cause I, you know, I was just figuring… with your Water Tribe getup… that you are … a Water Tribe… gal.”  
Now you’re confused. You two are borderline matching, how is she not Water Tribe?  
“Nope, you’re right. I’m a waterbender. And a firebender.”  
Your jaw drops. No fucking way.  
“Mm. Mm-hmm. I’m very confused right now.”  
You go to tell Bolin, but Mako speaks up first.  
“You’re the avatar… and I’m an idiot.”  
“Both are true.”  
Bolin turns to us, and mock whispers.  
“The Avatar!”

As the four of us walk to the gym, you’re attempting to make casual small talk.  
“Oh Spirits, the avatar! Can I paint you? I’ve painted benders and elements, but never the avatar! Oh wow, I bet you know the air benders too, I’ve never painted an air bender, oh I bet their island is pretty, I've never been, would it be overstepping if I asked you to introduce me?”  
Okay so you were rambling.  
She rubs the back of her neck, and gives you a half hearted chuckle.  
“Maybe? I’ll have to ask…”  
“Bolin, did you hear that? I might get to paint the airbenders! Oh, this is so cool!”  
You grab Bolins arm and shake it in excitement, and he laughs along. Korra leans a little towards Bolin.  
“Is she always this, animated?”  
“Only when it comes to painting.”  
“Has she painted you? I’m pretty nervous about the idea of being painted, is it weird?”  
“Oh no she’s painted all of us! We’ve been friends since we were little, she’s even painted Hasook, and she makes all of our game banners.”  
At this point you all arrive at the gym, and the boys split to change into more casual clothes.  
“So, Y/N…”  
“Yeah? What’s up?”  
“What’s up with Mako?”  
“He’s just annoyed with Bolin, and then stressed about the match, and Hasook. He’s sweeter once you get to know him, if not a little awkward.”  
“Annoyed with Bolin?”  
“Yeah, he’s just tired of Bolin bringing girls to the equipment room…”  
“So he does this a lot?”  
Your tongue slipped. You recognize you have an opportunity here. You could play up Bolin’s player ways to scare the avatar off, but Bolin’s your friend first. If he found out you had intentionally sabotaged his chances… Plus you really want to see more of the avatar… But seeing Bolin date another girl…  
“Well, I mean not like all the time, it’s not like he entertains a bunch of girls, Mako just doesn’t think it’s professional for them to be in the equipment room! It’s not that big of a deal!”  
You smile through the poor cover up, hoping she has no more questions. She starts to respond when the boys come back from the locker room.  
“All right! Let’s see what’cha got!”  
You and Mako sit back and watch as Bolin shows Korra some moves, and Korra responds with powerful movements, catching on quickly. Bolin shows her how to adjust her movements, get her lighter on her feet. Add more speed to her power. It’s mesmerizing to watch, you’d seen Bolin train before, but watching him teach someone else had you watching him in a new light. Sure, he was handsome and strong, and built, but he was also talented and precise. And Korra is in her element, excuse the pun. She looks so sure of herself and confident and powerful, keeping up with Bolin with every move. Bolin claps his hands together, knocking you out of your own mind.  
“Wow! Nice adjustment! You’re a natural at this.”  
“Your movements are beautiful! I need to bring my easel in here next time!”  
“Not bad.”  
All three of you look at Mako, a little shocked that he spoke up.  
“What’s it take to impress this guy?”  
“What? I said ‘not bad’.”  
Korra pouts, as you and Bolin both give him a look, a look that says ‘Did you just give praise?’  
“You know what, it’s getting late. I think I’m gonna turn in. You kids have fun. Nice to meet you, Avatar Korra.”  
“Yeah, been a real pleasure.”  
“See ya upstairs, bro.”  
You look at the two of them, and you look at Bolin, and as much as it kills you to leave them alone together…  
“I should head home too, my dad is probably waiting for me.”  
“It was nice to meet you! So wait, you guys live here?”  
You listen to their voices fade as Bolin and Korra talk and get back to training.

You lock the door behind you as you enter your father's shop, and just as you thought, the upstairs light is still on. As you reach the top, you’re greeted by the smell of cabbage noodles.  
“Hey dad!”  
“Hey hon! How’d the match go?”  
“They won, but you’ll never guess who I met today!”  
“Who?”  
“Guess!”  
“Okay! Um… Was it the president?”  
You shake your head.  
“Hmm, how about the firelord?”  
“Nuh uh!”  
“Couldn’t have been the avatar…”  
“It was! It was dad! I met the avatar today! She came to watch the match, and she’s so cool and I got to watch her train with Bolin and she’s so powerful!”  
“Oh wow! I had heard she was in the city, but you actually met her! That’s amazing!”  
“She was amazing!”  
“You had an exciting night! Now eat up and tell me all about it.”  
He sits two bowls of noodles on the table, and you start giving a more detailed retelling of the night's events.

You’ve got your arms around the shoulders of both Mako and Bolin, the two boys looking miserable. As you’re attempting to console them, Korra rushes into the room, and has to double take at the three of you.  
“I didn’t miss your match, did I? You guys look like you lost already.”  
Bolin puts his face in his hands.  
“We might as well have!”  
“Hasook’s a no-good no-show!”  
A referee comes in behind Korra.  
“You got two minutes to come out ready to play, or you’re disqualified.”  
He then leaves, and Mako leans his head against the wall and sighs.  
“Well, there goes our shot at the tournament… and the winnings.”  
Korra looks around the room at the other three people, awkwardly getting ready.  
“Can’t you ask one of those guys to fill in?”  
“Nah. The rules say you can only compete on one team.”  
“Well, what about Y/N? She’s a waterbender, and she watches all of your games?”  
You grimace.  
“I… have a hard time with the rules… and not getting hit…”  
“There’s a reason she’s not on the team already, otherwise Hasook wouldn’t have had to join at all…” Ouch Mako...  
“Well, then… how about me? I’m a top-notch waterbender, if I do say so myself!”  
The boys look at eachother, then back at Korra.  
“But, you’re the avatar,” Bolin looks to Mako “Isn’t that cheating?”  
“It isn’t cheating if I only do waterbending.”  
Mako shakes his head.  
“No way. I’d rather forfeit than look like a fool out there.”  
“Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence.”  
You turn to Mako.  
“Come on Mako, it’s better to look stupid than to not try at all, at least with Korra you have a chance!”  
Before Mako can respond, the referee comes back into the room.  
“Time’s up. You in or out?”  
Korra wastes no time with responding.  
“We’re in!”  
“We are?”  
“Yes!”  
Mako and Bolin say at the same time. Korra and Bolin start getting into their gear as quickly as possible, Mako staring at both of them in disbelief.  
“Hey, I didn’t agree to this!”  
“You can thank me later.”  
Mako turns to you, before also getting his gear on.  
“This girl is crazy!”  
“I think it’s a fun kind of crazy though!” You laugh back.

Once they’re geared up, they start walking onto the platform, but you stop Korra.  
“Hey, no matter what happens out there, they may forget to say it, but thank you, it means a lot to all three of us. Now go kick some ass.”  
Korra grins and gives you a thumbs up before jogging to catch up with the boys. You wring your hands as you watch the match take place. Korra starts out with a powerful foul as she knocks one of the other players off the platform. Mako’s response says it all, he’s regretting this already. You can’t hear what they’re saying, but they quickly get back to the action. And you start to sweat as Korra commits foul after foul, maybe this was a bad idea. Watching her yell at the referee is entertaining, you’d probably laugh if not for the bundle of nerves your body has become. Both boys look annoyed and embarrassed as the game goes on. Your hands turn to fists as you watch the other team, the Platypus Bears, focus all of their power onto Korra. Rude. She’s being bombarded from every angle, cornered and overwhelmed. So overwhelmed, she earthbends in defense. Shit. The crowd gives a collective gasp, everyone putting the pieces together in shock. Time is called as a whistle is blown, Korra looking awkward and Mako looking disappointed but not surprised. After some discussion and debate, the referee’s call their decision, Korra can play as long as she sticks to waterbending. Which was the original plan. The Platypus Bears look upset, but once the match starts they come back with a fever, once again targeting Korra with all that they’ve got. She may be strong, but even she can’t handle all of these attacks at once, and before you know it she’s in the water. You look over the railing to look for Korra, and find an unfamiliar man standing there. Korra seems to know him though, as she looks sheepish at first, before they seem to get into a fight. You can’t hear anything but from their body language it looks nasty. And then with a sharp turn, she’s on the elevator up. You want to ask what that was about, but she hurries her way back onto the stadium. And the third match starts. Your attention goes from Korra, to Bolin as he gets in a defensive position, the waterbender on the other team targeting him. You have your fingers crossed that he can find an opening, but it's not looking likely. You’re definitely going to have bruises to heal after this. Your eyes are on Bolin, so you don’t notice that Korra is so close to the edge until the announcer brings it to your attention. You look on in awe as her entire stance changes, and she moves like you’ve never seen before. This stance lets her easily dodge the other teams attack, tiring out the other team! The waterbender goes for Mako and Bolin but falls just short, giving them the opportunity to get back on the offensive! Together, the three of them send all three of the other players into the drink, a total knockout! You’ve never cheered this hard in your life, and you’ve been to a lot of these matches. Korra and Bolin celebrate the win, but Mako has a serious look on his face. The three talk for a moment before making their way back to the equipment room, and you rush them, and jump to give Bolin a running hug from which he easily catches you. He spins you around and your heart threatens to beat out of your chest as sets you down and you go to hug the other two.  
“You guys did it, you’re in the championship! We have to celebrate!”  
Korra kinda rubs the back of her neck.  
“I don’t know, Tenzin seemed pretty upset…”  
“I don’t know who that is, but if he was mad a second ago, then you should give him the time to calm down. Celebrate with us!”  
Bolin comes and slings an arm around both your shoulders and shoots Korra a grin.  
“Yeah! Come celebrate!”  
All three of you look over to Mako, who averts his gaze sheepishly.  
“You’ve earned it…”  
Korra smiles.  
“Alright, let’s do it!”

You all get to your dad’s shop and start to unlock the door. Mako and Bolin are leaning against the wall while Korra looks in the dark shop windows.  
“You know, I thought we would go out to eat or something…”  
Bolin laughs.  
“Oh we are going to eat alright! But we don’t really have the yuans for a fancy restaurant.”  
You turn to her and grin as you hold the door open.  
“Don’t worry, my dad’s the best cook around. Food’s his love language.”  
Mako and Bolin head in, and you lean to whisper to Korra.  
“Plus he lets us drink on special occasions.” and you wink at her as she walks in, but turns back as you both look up at her very large polar bear dog.  
“Sorry Naga, you won’t fit in here, wait for me okay?”  
You reach to pet behind her ears.  
“I’ll bring her out some of the food later before you guys go home.”  
You and Korra enter the store, and you lock the door behind her. She waits for you to lead the way, but looks around the shop at all the pottery.  
“Do you make these?”  
“Oh no, I’ve always been garbage with clay, but I paint the pots sometimes. I mostly do water colors, but none of that’s out here, it’s all in my corner of the studio.”  
“Right you paint! You guys have a studio?”  
“Yeah! It’s mostly my dads, but when I started painting he cleared me a little space. Now come on, this way! I can smell the food already!”  
You take her hand and guide her up the stairs, where you can hear that the festivities have begun without you. You open the door, to find the kitchen table covered in all kinds of food. Cakes, cookies, steam buns, Jook, meat kebabs, duck, and dumplings for you. Your dad is rustling both boys' hair, as Mako talks about the match and Bolin fits a couple steam buns into his mouth. The scene warms your heart, making your smile as wide as it could be. Your dad and Bolin get along so well, it just makes your feelings for him that much stronger, knowing your dad approves. It’s the sight and scent of home, and you couldn’t imagine it any other way. Your dad looks up and sees you in the doorway.  
“Hey hon, where you been?”  
“I was just showing Korra around the shop before we came up.”  
He raises an eyebrow at you, and you move aside to let her in the room.  
“Dad, this is Korra, the avatar! She helped the boys with their match tonight!”  
Your dad comes over and shakes her hand with both of his.  
“Oh I heard! I was listening to the match while I cooked, you got it right at the end, good job! It’s nice to meet you!”  
Korra smiles awkwardly.  
“It’s nice to meet you too.”  
He walks back over and grabs an extra chair from another room.  
“Here, Korra, have a seat and help yourself! Any friend of Y/N’s is a friend of mine!”  
You follow suit and sit down with them, joining in on the conversation and food, reaching immediately for a dumpling.

“Well kids, I think I gotta check out for the night.” He says through an exaggerated yawn and a stretch “Y/N, I can handle opening the shop tomorrow, have fun with your friends”   
He comes over and kisses you on your hair, before leaving the room, closing a door behind him.  
“Thanks dad, love you!”  
Mako and Korra continue their conversation as you respond to your dad, and Bolin holds his fingers up in a silent count down. Korra raises an eyebrow, and you hold up a finger to your lips at Korra. Once Bolin’s countdown finishes, you get up and begin going downstairs, everyone else following behind, Bolin with the remaining cakes on a plate. You go into the studio, and turn a single light on. There’s a kiln and pottery wheel against one wall, a table with sculpting tools and various glazes, and a wall of pottery in various stages of finished. There’s also a small corner with an easel and table, a work in progress on the easel, the table covered in paints and brushes and cups of discolored water. Several rolls of paper lay underneath the table, finished pieces. You walk over to a large pot and reach into it, pulling out a bottle of bai jii, and a couple of cups. Korra is pulled from looking at all of the art around her, noticing the new items in your hand.  
“What’s that?”  
“Have you never had alcohol?”  
Korra looks sheepish.  
“No, the White Lotus are pretty strict.”  
You and the boys look at eachother, before wordlessly pouring her a cup, which Bolin hands her.  
“Here, have the first cup.”  
Mako turns his head, and you put your hand over your mouth while Bolin just grins watching. She glances at the liquid before attempting to down it all in one go, leading to a choking coughing fit. Bolin starts laughing while Mako gives way to a grin. You stifle a laugh and go to pat her on the back.  
“It’s rough at first, just go slow next time and you’ll get used to it.”  
You pour more for everyone, and have a little cheers moment clinking your cups together. You all find places to sit in the messy studio, slowly drinking and making jokes.   
“Wait, you said your dad lets you drink, why did we wait until he went to sleep, and why was it hidden?”  
“Oh, me and my dad have an understanding. I won’t be wild and party all the time, and he turns a blind eye on special occasions. He buys it and puts it in the pot, we just don’t make it a regular thing, we don’t get crazy drunk, and we don’t tell him.”  
“Wow.”  
“Yeah, Y/N’s dad rules!” Bolin adds.  
“He seems to trust you two as well?”  
Mako takes a sip before responding.  
“Her dad’s done a lot for us, we’ve known him a long time.”  
The three of you begin retelling the fateful night you met, telling jokes all the way through. Once that story is done, all four of you spend an hour or so just swapping childhood stories. Mako and Bolin leave first, taking some of the leftovers with them. After letting them out, Y/N walks back to the studio to find Korra looking at her easel.  
“This is your art, right?”  
“Yeah, that one isn’t done though.”  
“They’re really good!”  
You blush.  
“Thanks, but I’ve got a long way to go. My offer to paint you still stands if you’d like though.”  
“Not tonight, but I’ll think about it. I think I’m gonna go face Tenzin’s wrath.”  
You walk with her to let her out, bringing some leftover duck for Naga as well.  
“I’ll see you around, avatar. Get home safe!”


	3. Missing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team needs money for the championship, and Bolin's solution leads everyone into a heap of trouble...

Despite last night's festivities, you woke up bright and early to help your dad open the shop. Your dad is getting the change drawer ready and counted when you make your way down the stairs. He doesn’t look up when you come in, not surprised to find you up and around.  
“A bit early isn’t it?”  
“It’s always too early, but the shop won’t open itself.”  
“‘Atta girl.”  
You get busy dusting the shelves and sweeping the floor, tidying up before he goes and unlocks the door. You then go out and wash the window, and then you're stuck behind the counter for a couple of hours. You watch the store and attend to the occasional customer while your dad spins pots and bowls and the like, until around noon when he relieves you of your duties for the day. You figure the team is done with training for the day, so you grab your easel and paint and head over, determined to paint Korra today.   
You reach the gym and run into Butakha on his way out. You sneer at him as you pass, and you find them packing their training equipment for the day. They don’t notice you walking up, you come in in the middle of their conversation and Mako looks stressed.  
“How are we gonna come up with the money?”  
“Oh, oh I got it! I got it, I’ve been training Pabu to do circus tricks. Now people would pay good money to see that!”  
You cut in, leaning around Bolin.  
“I know I would, but what do we need THAT much money for?”  
“Hey Y/N, turns out there’s an entrance fee for the championship. We need thirty thousand yuans by the end of the week or we give up our spot.”  
Well that wiped the smile off your face.  
“And our ideas so far are…”  
“Me and Pabu’s circus tricks!”  
Spirits he is adorable. You adjust the bag on your shoulder, and straighten your posture.  
“Well, maybe I can help too! I could also do some sort of street performance? Maybe sell portraits or caricatures!”  
Mako and Korra look hesitant, but you and Bolin are already on the warpath.  
“Guys, come on. We need serious ideas.”  
You and Bolin look at Mako, then at each other, then back at Mako.  
“I was serious.”  
“So was I…”  
Mako waves you off, and walks away out of the gym.  
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll figure something out. I always do.”  
The three of you watch him leave.

You stand to the side, looking at Bolin as he sets up his street act underneath the statue of Fire Lord Zuko. Bolin begins his act, his flashy jacket sparkling in the sun. Pabu wears a similar little jacket, and Bolin currently dons a fake mustache.   
“Come one, come all!” Bolin has a bunch of little props for Pabu set up. “See Pabu the fantastic fire ferret as he crosses the Ladder of Peril, upside down!”  
He finishes his introduction with a flourish, but Pabu sits there ignoring him, tending to his paws instead.  
“Psst, psst.” Once Bolin signals him, Pabu perks up and begins. He jumps onto the plank Bolin had set up and starts walking across it on his front paws. “Big finish, buddy. Stick the landing!”  
Pabu flips off the plank and lands on one front paw. Bolin stands and holds both arms out.  
“Ta da!”  
As he says that, someone walks by and tosses a coin into Bolin’s little cup. He smiles wide.  
“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen! You are too kind! Seriously, too kind! You can come back here and put money right in this-” He shakes his cup, and when he hears how little money is in it his smile falls a little, “Okay, that’s fine, that’s fine.”  
You walk over to him and place a hand on his arm.   
“How much did you get?”  
“One yuan down, 29,999 to go.”  
You give him a small smile, but before you can say anything a bright red car pulls up, catching the attention of both of you. The window rolls down, and you can immediately tell that this guy is bad news. The driver gives Bolin a double take.  
“Hey, Bolin. Is that you?”  
Bolin looks uncomfortable talking to this guy, and you cross your arms and give this guy the nastiest glare you can manage.  
“Oh, hey there, Shady Shin.”  
He gets out of his car and walks over, and he smirks when he notices you.  
“You gonna introduce me to your girlfriend Bolin?”  
Do not get caught up in those words, you think to yourself. Do you guys look like a couple? Do other people think that? You kinda shake your head and get back in the moment.  
“This is Y/N.”  
“And who are you?”  
He kinda gives a dismissive huff, and turns back to Bolin.  
“Heard you’re a big time pro-bending player now. Not bad.”  
Bolin kinda looks away and scratches at his head.  
“Uh, thanks…”  
“So listen. I got an offer for ya. Lightning Bolt Zolt is lookin’ to hire some extra muscle.”  
His eyes flick between you and Shin nervously.  
“Uh, I don’t know, Shin. Mako told me to stay away from the Triple Threats.”  
So that’s why Bolin looks so uncomfortable and guilty, this is some triad piece of shit he must’ve worked with when he was younger. You can feel your face and ears heating up angrily.  
“Pff, your brother ain’t the boss of you. It’s just a little security work. Nothin’ crooked.”  
You roll your eyes and audibly scoff at that, and Shin gives you a little sideways glance. Shin then digs in his pockets, pulling out a wad of cash, and haphazardly tosses it into Bolin’s little cup. He grabs his can and shakes his head in disbelief as he looks at all the money.  
“You game?”  
Bolin doesn’t answer, but keeps looking at the money. He actually looks like he’s considering it! You turn to Bolin.  
“You can’t be serious, are you actually thinking about accepting?”  
He kinda grimaces and looks up at you.  
“Well, I mean, we need the money… and it’s just one job…”  
“You know what? Do what you want, if you’re actually fucking considering working with the Triads again, I’m just gonna go.”  
Shady Shin whistles and laughs as you stomp away, trying not to cry from just how angry you are.

You're washing paint brushes, when the front door bell rings with the swing of the door. You dry your hands and walk into the front of the shop.  
“Hey, I’m sorry but we’re closed. You can come back-” You look up, finally seeing exactly who just came in, “Mako? Korra? What’s going on?”  
Mako and Korra look at eachother.  
“So he’s not here either?”  
“What do you mean either?”  
“Bolin wasn’t at our place, and he wasn’t with Korra, so we thought we’d check here next.”  
Your eyes widen.  
“He didn’t-”  
Mako raises an eyebrow.  
“He didn’t what?”  
“We need to check somewhere before I jump to conclusions, come on.”   
You want to give him the benefit of the doubt, but the interaction you saw today and now this? Your blood is already boiling. The three of you hop on Naga and you lead the way.

You come to the Zuko statue, with no Bolin in sight.  
“Well, this is where I left him…”  
“Makes sense, this is his usual hangout.”  
Mako hops off Naga after you, and he goes to approach a small group of street kids. You follow behind, muttering to yourself.  
“I can’t fucking believe… He better not… I’m gonna kick his ass…”  
And so on. You were angry, but you weren’t just angry. You were scared, worried about him, he got seriously hurt last time he dealt with the Triads. You decided to focus on the anger instead of thinking about it too much.  
“You guys seen my brother around here today?”  
This kid looks at Mako.  
“Perhaps. My memory’s a little… ‘foggy’.”  
He leans forwards and not so casually rubs his nose.  
“Maybe you can help ‘clear it up’.  
And he holds out his hand. Around this time Korra comes up behind us, wanting to see what’s taking us so long. Mako scratches his head, thinking, but gives in.   
“You’re good, Skoochy… a real pro.”  
Mako pulls out a single yuan bill and hands it to Skoochy, who immediately pockets it. You glance at Korra, who looks shocked.  
“Yeah, I seen him.”  
“When?”  
“About noon.”  
“What was he doing?”  
“He was performing some kind of monkey rat circus… and then…”  
Skoochy holds his hand out again, and Mako places another bill in his hand.  
“Mako, I could’ve told you that! I was with him!”  
Mako ignores you.  
“And then what? Why did he leave?”  
Skoochy leans in close and shields one side of his mouth with his hand.  
“Shady Shin showed up and flashed some serious cash. Bo took off with him in his hot rod. The Triple Threats? The Red Monsoons? The Agni Kais? All the triads are muscling up for something real big. Now that’s all you’re getting outta me!”  
Then Skoochy and his friends run off.  
“Mother fucker, Bolin!”  
Korra looks at both you and Mako. You’re pacing again, wringing your hands. Mako looks stressed.  
“What’s he talking about?”  
“It sounds like there’s a turf war brewing, and Bolin’s about to get caught right in the middle of it.”

Your arms are wrapped around Korra's waist, Mako sits behind you as the three of you ride on the back of Naga. You’re currently stopped, waiting for the trolley to pass, but your grip doesn’t loosen and your eyes don't open. It’s not the ride that has you so stressed, you can’t help but think of all the things that could happen. Bolin could be in all sorts of danger, and sure he can handle himself, but he’s too sweet to see when he’s being used. It’s not a character flaw, it’s part of why you like him, it just gets him in trouble sometimes. Now that you’re not moving, and not speaking, the anger has faded and you can’t hide behind it anymore. You squeeze Korra tighter, and Mako pats your back comfortingly while you’re stopped. You slowly started to open an eye, when Naga jerked forward and began moving again.  
“So where’re we headed?”  
“The Triple Threat Triad’s headquarters. Hopefully Bolin’s there and nothing’s gone down yet.”  
You can feel Korra twist around to look at Mako.  
“The Triple Threat Triad? I beat up some of those yahoos when I got into town. Why would Bolin get tangled up wit-”  
She gets interrupted when Naga’s slow trot becomes a full on sprint. The three of you are flung back and forth as Naga turns left and right at full speed. Cars honk their horns and skid to stops as Naga weaves through what you assume is street traffic. Korra tries to pull the rains and call her to a halt, to no avail. Naga makes another hard turn and makes a sudden, jolting stop. You’re going to have a bruise from where Mako’s face slammed into your back.   
“That’s Pabu!”  
You open your eyes and whip around, and find the familiar ferret on top of a street light, and the three of you slide off of Naga. You rush over to the street light, and try to coax Pabu down. Korra starts talking to Naga.  
“No, Naga! Pabu’s a friend, not a snack!”  
Naga chills out (pun intended) and Pabu slides down the street light. They touch noses, as though calling a truce before Pabu comes over to run circles around you and Mako. You drop a knee to embrace Pabu, who climbs up your arms and into your top, snuggling against you. For the first time since your fight with Bolin, you smile. Mako looks at you, and the look on his face reminds you of what’s at stake.  
“We gotta hurry.”  
What could’ve happened to Bolin to make him leave Pabu out here?

The whole group sits outside the Triple Threat Headquarters. The moon is full, but the clouds and sky are foggy and ominous.   
“Something’s not right. There’re usually thugs posted out front. We better be cautious.”  
Mako’s right, while you have a large group, it’s surprisingly empty out here. He cautiously walks over, and presses himself up against the door. He peers into the door’s window, and waves us over. Mako continues to sneak around, yourself following suit, while Korra goes for a more direct approach. Direct as in kicks the double doors off their hinges, and walks right in. We walk in behind her, and luckily it’s empty. Weirdly empty even. It looks like they got into a fight or something, a lot of their furniture is turned over or broken.   
“Bolin? You in here?’  
Mako calls out, but the answer is obvious. It seems like a dead end, until we hear the sound of an engine roaring to life. We rush out the back doors, into an alleyway, and we’re just in time to a truck gearing up to go, accompanied by five motorcycles. The truck's back doors are open, and what’s inside freezes you. Shady Shin and Bolin are tied up and gagged sitting on the floor of the truck. A masked person comes up and closes the doors before the truck and motorcycles speed off, the three of you running after them.  
“Bolin!”  
You and Mako yell at the same time. Distracted by Bolin and the truck, none of you see the smoke grenades two of the motorcyclists are holding until they’re coming at you. They hit the ground and explode with a flash of bright light and they make a heavy green smoke, completely obscuring your view. You can barely hear the screeching of their tires over all three of your coughing fits.   
“Naga, come!”  
Korra starts running through the smoke, and you and Mako follow her lead, Naga coming up behind you. Korra leaps onto Naga as she runs past, and Mako leaps after her, and you use water bending to propel yourself onto her. This time your eyes stay open as Naga turns and weaves through the street at full speed after the truck and motorcycles. Mako starts throwing fire blasts at the motorcycles, who swerve to dodge. Korra brings up her arms, the earth following along with her motions, and Naga follows the cracks produced. One motorcyclist manages to avoid the first big crack, but focused on that crack, they don’t notice the earth ramp which sends them flying through the air. The rider manages to adapt and lands safely before continuing to follow the truck. They turn out of the narrow streets you had been following and burst into a large open square, and two of the motorcyclists fall back and one throws a bola at Naga’s feet. She’s too big to dodge, and her feet are successfully tied up as the three of us are thrown forward off her back as she crashes to the ground. Korra is the first to her feet, following Mako who had slid on his back and groans from the pain. You on the other hand are flung between them, flying much farther than the other two. You look up from your place on the ground, dazed, and watch the scene unfold in front of you. The motorcyclists stand on either side of Mako and Korra and one runs right for Korra, as Korra without hesitation ignites one of her fists and blasts fire at her attacker. They jump and twist over it in the air, like a dancer, and they hit the ground running. When they reach Korra, Korra starts punching. They punch, they respond, right, left, offense, defense. Fire blasts that the motorcyclist dodges and diverts, the motorcyclist then knocks Korra to the side, and Korra responds with a roundhouse fire kick, which is sadly evaded.   
You hear Mako cry out, and it shakes you from watching Korra fight, which isn’t your fault. It’s mesmerizing. But Mako being in danger knocks the sense back into your head, and you’re on your feet less than a second before you’re running to help. You get there and find Korra and Mako are both semi paralyzed, having to fight with one arm. You make two whips and attempt to grab ankles and hit hands away to aid in the fight. But the motorcyclists easily dodge the attacks from all sides. Before you know it, both Korra and Mako are parlyzed on the ground, quickly followed by you as you were cornered two against one. They both begin coming towards you, swinging bolas, when a growl rips through the air, distracting both assailants. See, as you guys were fighting, Naga and Pabus were figuring out how to get Naga untied. And when the cyclists turn to look, all they see is a giant polar bear dog barreling at them at full speed, teeth bared and growling. As they ran to their motorcycles, Pabu jumped off Naga and followed the example, bouncing and squeaking. They quickly drove away.  
As they speed away, Korra and Mako slowly begin to move again. Korra wraps her arms around Naga to pull her up and support her, Mako just sits there trying to recover, and you lay there while Pabu sits on your stomach. Korra punches out into the air.  
“Ugh, I can’t bend.”  
She tries again, and panic slowly dawns on her face, and you start wiggling your fingers.  
“I Can’t Bend!”  
Mako slowly stands, and starts trying to stretch. You sit up.  
“Calm down, it’ll wear off. Those guys were chi blockers. They’re Amon’s henchmen.”  
“Amon? That anti-bending guy with a mask?”  
Mako helps you stand.  
“Yeah, he’s the leader of the Equalists.”  
“Ew, those guys are so gross. I didn’t think they were this serious…”  
Korra raises an eyebrow.  
“What do they want with the Triple Threats?”  
“Whatever it is, can’t be good.”  
Mako puts his hand to his forehead and lets out a heavy sigh.   
“Ugh, I can’t believe Bolin got himself into this mess!”  
“... I should’ve stayed with him, I just left out of anger and he…”  
Korra puts her hands on one of your shoulders and one of Makos.  
“Mako, Y/N, we are going to save Bolin. I promise you that.”

You’ve been out for hours, riding Naga through Republic City’s streets trying to find any sign of Bolin. Your head is resting against Mako’s back, eyes burning from being out so late, and from maybe silently crying behind Mako. Maybe. Suddenly Naga comes to a stop.  
“We’ve been out all night, no sign of him.”  
You sit up, so tired, and irritable.  
“So we’re just gonna give up?!”  
“No, we’ve gotta keep looking. But where?”  
That last question has everyone’s shoulders slumped forward, leaving you feeling hopeless. But Korra suddenly lights up, and grabs Mako’s shoulders.  
“I have an idea!”

You're tired, but Korra seems more determined than ever, and it puts energy back in your system. Hope, the hope that you’ll see him again, soon, and unhurt. Or at least alive. You find yourself in Republic Park City, in the early morning. You can’t see the sun, but the sky is a pale orange and there's fog sitting over the grass. Mako is sitting next to the fountain, Naga and Pabu are taking a drink from it, and you’re looking out into the park. Korra looks at the opposite side of the park. SHe turns and points off into the distance.  
“The first day I got into town, I ran into an Equalist protester over there.”  
Mako opens his eyes.  
“And you think they’ll know where Bolin is?”  
She shrugs.  
“It’s our only lead right now.”  
“It’s enough for me, what do we do?”

You’re now all sat under a tree, Mako half asleep against Naga, Korra leaned against the tree, and you are keeping a lookout. Korra is looking around kind of uneasy, and she clears her throat.  
“So… why is Bolin running around with the Triple Threat Triad, anyway?”  
You give a single laugh. A “Ha!” that says ‘oh, this should be good’. You turn and raise your eyebrows at Mako, and then turn back around for your watch.  
“Well, we… we used to do some work for them back in the day.”  
“What? What, are you some kind of criminal?”  
Hearing that, your anger fades a little, knowing the full circumstances of why they used to. Bolin joining back up just left you hurt, you forgot how Mako felt about all of it.  
“No! You don’t know what you’re talking about. I just ran numbers for them and stuff. We were orphans out on the street; I did what I had to do to survive and protect my little brother.”  
Korra moves to sit next to Mako, and you’re right next to them but are really trying to not listen, to give a little privacy… You are for sure listening though.  
“I’m sorry. It must have been really hard. Can I ask what happened to your parents?”  
Mako sighs, and grips his scarf.  
“They were mugged, by a firebender. He cut them down right in front of me. I was eight.”  
That happened before you knew him, and while Bolin warmed up quickly, it took a while for Mako to open up enough to hear this story. You don’t even have to turn and look, you know Mako has his nose in his scarf. It’s his comfort.  
“Mako…”  
“Bolin’s the only family I have left. If anything happened to him…”  
You clench your fists at that, you don’t know what you would do if anything happened to either of them, or your dad. You go to sit on the other side of Mako and lean your head on his shoulder, and he leans his head back on yours. He says Bolin is his only family, but you know. You’re like his little sister, your dad helped to semi-raise him at times, he just is so protective over Bolin. You’re family but Bolin is blood, he raised him. He grew up too fast.

“Equality Now! Equality Now!”  
The sound wakes the three of you up, you're lost in Naga’s fur, and you wake up fast enough to see Mako and Korra leaning against each other. Honestly, it’s kinda cute, the sun is shining through the branches onto their faces. You’ll have to tease him about that later, right now you need them awake. You lightly slap both their faces and watch their eyes flutter open. You also get to watch the glorious moment they realize they were basically cuddling, all stutters and wide eyes and flushed faces. They fumble for a bit before your thoughts are once again interrupted.  
“Equality now! Equality now! We want equality now!”  
You grin at the both of them.  
“Good morning guys… wanna get straight to business?”  
“Yes!”  
They brush themselves off, and you all walk over to the noise.  
“Nonbenders of Republic City…”  
Korra points him out.  
“That’s our guy!”  
“... Amon calls you to action! Take back your city! It’s time for the…”  
The crowd gasps as Korra walks through them and directly up to him while you and Mako stay behind the group.  
“It’s you again!”  
He points his megaphone right in Korra’s face. Poor guy…  
“You cannot silence me, Avatar!”  
She swats the megaphone away and it breaks into pieces upon hitting the ground.  
“Shut your yapper and listen up. My friend got kidnapped by some chi blockers. Where’d they take him?”  
He crosses his arms and looks away, like a toddler throwing a fit.  
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”  
“Oh, I think you do.”  
Korra lifts her leg up and slams it back into the ground, and as her foot hits the ground, the earth beneath his little podium rises and throws this guy. You have to cover your mouth to keep from laughing. Leaflets fly and scatter around and rain down on the crowd. The protester sits up and begins collecting leaflets dejectedly, and Mako makes his way through the crowd and picks up a leaflet.  
“‘Witness the Revelation tonight, nine o’ clock’. What’s this ‘Revelation’?”  
“Nothing that concerns the likes of you two!”  
Korra grabs him by the shirt and holds him in the air. You really just can’t hold it in at this point, you’re laughing. A couple people in the crowd turn to glare at you.   
“You better believe it concerns us. Spill it.”  
The guy kicks his feet and grabs hold of Korra's wrists. You make your way closer, you want to hear this.  
“No one knows what the Revelation is! And I have no idea what happened to your friend!”  
And his whole tone changes.  
“But if he’s a bender, then my bet is he’s getting what’s coming to him.”  
You slap him across the face with a whip of water. Mako kind of looks at you, eyebrow raised, and then turns back to him.  
“Where’s it happening?”  
The sound of a whistle brings you all out of the moment. You turn to look to the left and see a police officer running towards you, while still blowing his whistle.  
“Hey! What’s going on over there?”  
The guy starts struggling hard.  
“The avatar’s oppressing us! Help!”  
Korra tosses him to the side.  
“Let’s scram.”  
The three of you run off, and while passing you stick your tongue out at him, just for fun. Mako snags a handful of those leaflets before vaulting onto Naga, and he pulls you up after him, and then Naga takes off. 

The three of you are hiding out underneath a bridge, examining the leaflets. Mako had a map on him, and hung it up behind Korra.  
“Why didn’t the Equalists put a location on these?”  
Korra holds a leaflet at arms length, turning it around, annoyed.  
“Probably because they don’t want just anyone waltzing in to their big’” He pulls our air quotes, “‘Revelation’, whatever that is. I bet the information is hidden on here somehow…”  
You turn your leaflet around, and look at the map. And then back to the leaflet, and back to the map. And then you hop off the back of Naga, and pick up another pamphlet, and turn it around. And then at the map, at the back of the pamphlet. You do this two more times. Mako raises an eyebrow at you.  
“Y/N, what is it?”  
“Guys, look at the back of these, there’s four different images.”  
Korra and Mako walk behind you and look over your shoulders at the pamphlets. Korra smiles at Mako.  
“So, it’s a puzzle?”  
“Yeah, of a map!”  
Mako runs around up to the map, and waves you over. You, Korra, and Mako hold all of the Pamphlets against the wall next to the map, and one has a red dot on it’s back.  
“Bingo. That must be where it’s going down.”

The gang is sitting outside a building, looking around the corner. It’s night, and you’ve watched several sets of people walk into this factory, it even has a bouncer outside.  
“This is the place.”  
You, Mako, and Korra all change into disguises, wearing hats and large jackets, and make your way to the line outside the entrance. You watch as people in front of you flash their leaflet at the doorman. Your group gets closer and closer to the doorman, and Korra grabs Mako’s arm.  
“What are you doing?”  
“We’ll attract less attention this way.”  
You give Mako a smirk, before turning to Korra.  
“And who do I get to hold on to?”  
Before she can answer, we are at the doorman. He crosses his arms and looks you all up and down.  
“This is a private event. No one gets in without an invitation.”  
Korra and Mako look confused, and you have to keep yourself from rolling your eyes. How did you not notice this before today?  
“Uh…”  
You reach into your pocket and pull out a pamphlet to show him. The doorman eyes them for a moment, and grabs the leaflet. He takes a moment to look at it, and then smiles and steps aside.  
“The Revelation is upon us, brother and sisters.”  
Inside it’s packed, a sea of people stand milling about in front of an empty stage, and your stomach drops. Maybe this Equalist thing is a lot more serious…  
“I knew a lot of people hated benders, but I’ve never seen so many in one place…” He trails off for a moment, “Keep your eyes out for Bolin.”  
You nod, and you all begin wading through the crowd, when a voice fills the room.  
“Please welcome your hero, your saviour… Amon!”  
Amon emerges from somewhere behind the podium, and a line of Equalists come in behind him as the crowd is in uproar. A spotlight turns on, illuminating him, the star of the show. You cover your mouth, covering your horrified gasp at the scene unfolding around you. Amon walks up to the microphone, and they haven’t stopped cheering. How many people have you met on the street that are here right now? That hated you for something you can’t even control?  
“My quest for equality began many years ago. When I was a boy, my family and I lived on a small farm. We weren’t rich, and none of us were benders,” The emphasis on the word none, the disgust on benders, “This made us very easy targets for the firebender who extorted my father. One day, my father confronted this man, but when he did, that firebender took my family from me. Then, he took my face. I've been forced to hide behind a mask ever since.”  
You exchange glances with Mako and Korra, and go back to trying to scan the room for Bolin. It’s hard to keep your eyes off the stage, you don’t want to see or hear this but looking away is so difficult.  
“As you know, the Avatar has recently arrived in Republic City,” the crowd boos at this, and you grab Korra’s hand and squeeze it, and she hides her face in Mako’s scarf, “And if she were here, she would tell you that bending brings balance to the world. But, she is wrong. The only thing bending has brought to the world is suffering.”   
Amon repeatedly points into the audience. Like what he’s saying has meaning, and merit.  
“It has been the cause of every war in every era. But that is about to change.”  
What?  
“I know you have been wondering, ‘What is the Revelation?’ You are about to get your answer. Since the beginning of time, the spirits have acted as guardians of our world, and they have spoken to me. They say the Avatar has failed humanity. That is why the spirits have chosen me to usher in a new era of balance. They have granted me a power that will make Equality a reality. The power to take a person's bending away. Permanently.”  
The audience gasps, you along with it. But while they gasp in awe, you gasp is absolute horror. Korra’s eyes are wide.  
“That’s impossible… There’s no way.”  
Mako whispers back.  
“This guy’s insane!”  
“Now, for a demonstration. Please welcome, Lightning Bolt Zolt,” An Equalist leads a tied up man onto the stage. “Leader of the Triple Threat Triad, and one of the most notorious criminals in Republic City.”  
The crowd boos, and Zolt looks at the crowd annoyed, a sneer on his face.’  
“Ah, boo yourself!”  
Equalists lead more benders onto the stage, and the floor falls out from under you. Four people are led onto the stage, tied up and forced onto their knees. The last being Bolin. And he looks scared, anxious. You never want him to look that way again, you want to rush that stage and hold him until it goes away. You want his smile back. And you want to rip Amon’s spine out through his neck. You want to rip the teeth out of his face, you want his crowd to watch him, watch him turn into the fragile weak man you know he is. You grit your teeth, and clench your fists, every muscle in your body flexed and stressed.  
“There’s Bolin.”  
Korra starts walking forward, and Mako pulls her back. You seriously consider making him let her go.  
“Wait, we can’t fight them all. We need to be smart about this.”  
Korra looks angry, and leans in to look Mako in his eyes and she whispers through gritted teeth.  
“Then come up with a game plan, Team Captain.”  
“Zolt has amassed fortune by extorting and abusing nonbenders. But his reign of terror is about to come to an end. Now, in the interest of fairness, I will give Zolt the chance to fight to keep his bending.”  
Amon steps back as two guards push Zolt in the opposite direction of him, and untie him. Zolt stands and stretches, acting nonchalant and cocky.  
“You’re gonna regret doing that, pal.”  
Zolt wastes no time in throwing a blast at Amon. Amon nimbly dodges every single blast Zolt throws at him, and is making his way closer step by step. He gets closer and closer, and Zolt is starting to visibly panic. As a result he charges forward, lightning dancing on his fingers ready to fly. He goes to hit him when Amon ducks and grips his wrist and twists it away, causing the lightning to shoot onto the stage, before hitting the ceiling as Amon twists it farther and farther. Amon then grips Zolt’s neck, and he’s firing lightning off with both hands now, and Amon moves the hand that was on his wrist to his forehead. He places his thumb in the center, and Zolt’s face twists, complete and total fear. You're nauseous watching, you can feel something unbelievably bad is about to happen, and you are just watching. And if you don’t do something, Bolin could face this same fate, feel that same fear. Zolt screams, and Amon holds steady, as Zolt’s lightning dies down to fire which then dies down to… nothing. It just dies. Amon lets go of Zolt, and he collapses to the ground. Zolt scrambles backwards and attempts to blast Amon with his bending, his fire, to no avail. The crowd gasps.  
“Wha… what did you do to me?”  
“Your firebending is gone. Forever. The era of bending is over. A new era of Equality has begun!”  
The crowd cheers madly, jumping and waving and almost dancing. How could anyone cheer for this? Even if Zolt was a bastard, this just isn’t right. It looked unnatural and evil. It’s wrong. It makes you sick to your stomach, your heart threatens to pop out of your chest, and you’re sweating. By the Spirits, are you sweating. An Equalist kicks the next bender forward, Shady shin. Korra turns to you and Mako.  
“Any ideas yet?”  
Mako nods towards some machinery on the walls.  
“I think so, see those machines? They’re powered by water and steam. If you create some cover, I can grab Bolin without anyone seeing. Then, we duck out of here.”  
“Works for me, Y/N?”  
You nod.  
“Mako, good luck.”  
“You guys too.”  
You and Korra duck out from the crowd and move to one of the side exits, to a hallway filled with machines. You both stop, and Korra begins turning a big red wheel on the machine. You go to turn it with her, and with the combined efforts the wheel turns but only releases one small air leak.  
“It’s not enough!”  
You both crank harder, but hear a voice come from behind you.  
“Hey, you!”  
You both turn around, and there’s the doorman. He’s large, almost blocking the hallway just from his sheer size.  
“Is there a problem, my brother?”  
“What are you doing back here?”  
You look at each other for a moment.  
“Uh...looking for the bathroom?”  
Korra chuckles and flashes an innocent grin. The doorman pulls a wrench out from behind him. She looks at you, and you both nod, you continue to turn the wheel and she cracks her knuckles. Having started it, you have an easier time turning it but it’s still a strain, while Korra and the doorman get to know each other. All you can hear is grunting and groaning, the sounds of metal hitting metal, and fists. You hear the high pitched sound of steam, and finally turn to look. Korra dodges and dips around him, before taking Mako’s scarf and using it to bind his hands together and flings him towards the machine. It’s a good thing you turned around because you barely have enough time to dive out of the way of his huge body, but as he hits the machine he knocks away all the vents holding the steam down. He is unconscious.  
“Thanks, that should be enough steam, yeah?”  
You grin back at her and you both begin to bend the steam. You both gather more than enough and thrust it forward with all your combined might. You hear an explosion and screams come from the other room, and run to make your escape, mixing into the chaos of the crowd.

You and Korra make it out, and hear Mako and Bolin scream from around the building, and then you’re sprinting. You finally get to them and your heart flips at the sight of Bolin, and Mako, both alive. But there’s an Equalist here too, and he’s got them on the ground, and you hear him speak as you and Korra sneak closer.  
“...There’s just no place for you benders anymore.”  
And Korra slams his ass into the wall with a pillar of hard rock, knocking his weapons out of his hands.  
“I wouldn’t count us out just yet,” Korra loudly whistles, “Naga!”  
Naga immediately comes running around the building, and Korra walks over to Mako helping him up on his feet. Bolin sits up, dazed, and you rush him. Before he even knows what’s happening you are borderline in his lap, arms around his shoulders.  
“Oh! Hey Y/N what’re you…”   
From behind more Equalist soldiers begin to advance towards you. Korra and Mako are already on Naga.  
“OH We’ve gotta go!”  
He picks you up and slings you onto Naga, and before he can try and hop on, Naga grabs him by the collar with her teeth and begins sprinting off.  
“Stop… I Want… To be… on… your back… please!”  
You hear from behind Equalists shouting about the avatar,and when you look back you see Amon standing on a balcony, watching.

Korra dropped you off at the gym, and headed back to tell Tenzin what we saw, while you stayed behind to take care of the boys. They both had bruises, cuts, and burns. Both rope burns and electrical burns, from the charged weapons the Equalists had been using. So, you and your boys sat in their living area, healing and wrapping their wounds in silence. You all were too shocked to really say anything. Mako had less, and was done first. He took one look between the two of you.  
“I’m going to bed.”  
You both responded with quiet goodnights. And continued on in brutal silence once he left. You started to silently cry, keeping your head down and not looking at him so he wouldn’t see. He coughed, and reached back to rub his neck.  
“Hey Y/N, thank you for coming to get me, even though I’m sure you’re still mad at-”  
When he says that you look up at him, into his eyes.  
“Oh no, you’re crying, this is my fault, I’m sorry-”  
He holds your face in his hands as he tries to thumb away your tears, and you grab both his wrists.  
“You idiot, I’m not mad at you. I wasn’t ever really mad at you, I was worried. Upset that you were thinking about working for the Triads again, remembering how hurt you got last time. Scared to lose you. And when Mako and Korra came to the shop looking for you? It was like my worst nightmare, I don’t think I could handle losing either of you. You were getting mixed up with them again, and now you were gone. We spent two whole days looking for you, and when we finally did find you, in that truck? And then again with Amon? I just- I don’t want you to get hurt and-”  
Through each word you spoke you started crying harder and harder, until Bolin stopped you, pulling you up onto the couch with him. He wraps his arms around you, and you curl into him, like it’s the most natural thing in the world. He was the victim here, and yet here he was comforting you. He’s so strong and caring and kind, thinking about how close you got to losing him had you gripping his shirt tired as you cried into his shoulder.   
“It’s okay, it’s okay, I understand, you had a right to be mad. It was a stupid idea. It was also terrifying, I really thought I was gonna lose my bending, or die, or worse! And I just wanted to see you guys again, to be eating dumplings in your dad's kitchen and to hear Mako complain about me leaving stuff everywhere, and I’m…”  
He’s crying now too, much softer than your own tears, and he grips you tighter. You both spend the rest of the night crying into each other, until you both eventually fell asleep in each other’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've been updating this pretty quickly, but the rate of that may stagger and change as I'm a college student writing this purely for fun. I'm open to any corrections or constructive criticism, as I'm always looking to improve! I hope you like!


	4. Mako's Girlfriend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako meets someone new, Y/N makes a new friend, goes on a shopping spree and dances the night away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some OOC stuff in this, I know. Writing Mako is kind of difficult, he doesn't show a lot of emotion but all it takes is practice!

You wake up to the sun shining on your face. Your muscles are cramped, and there’s a weight on your right side. You slowly blink awake, blinking until your vision is no longer a blur, and are greeted by black, unruly hair. It takes your brain a minute to catch up, rewatching and processing the events of last night. Your heart stops, and your face heats up. Oh spirits. Bolin is cuddled up against your brea- chest, against your chest. Your face is heating up, and you suddenly can’t remember… Can Bolin do that seismic sensory thing? Because if so you need to get that heart rate DOWN fast, before the thumping wakes him up. You try to steady your breathing to calm your heart, and your eyes can’t help but drift to his face. He looks so peaceful like that, cheek squished up against you and big long eyelashes. You move your arm to push a curl away from his face, and find it under a blanket. You didn’t use a blanket… Every moment this gets worse, Mako saw. Mako knows. Mako saw you two curled up together and instead of waking you up, he put a blanket on you. Which would be very sweet if not for the fact that you’re curled up with his brother who he knows you have a major crush on, which has instead turned this moment embarrassing and terrible because the moment he has you alone he is going to torment you. You need to get up. But how? How do you get up without waking Bolin and subjecting him to this same embarrassment, is there any way out? You’re going blank. How are you supposed to think when he’s so warm and soft, but also visibly built, against you? If you can’t move without waking him up… maybe you should go back to sleep? Or at least pretend to sleep, treasure this moment as long as you can? You shimmy to get more comfortable, having been not even halfway through that thought before deciding that, yes, this is exactly what you’re going to do. You shimmy, and he moves. His eyes are still closed but you disturbed him and he moved. Oh spirits he drooled… You flick that away with your water bending, no one needs to know about that. You attempt to shimmy again, and his eyes flutter. Shit he is so pretty. Your brain is running a mile a minute while also completely short circuiting when the door to their apartment slams open, startling Bolin awake giving you the time to scoot the opposite direction. You and Bolin are now both wide awake and on opposite sides of the couch, breathing like you had just finished a marathon. And Mako strolls on in, and tosses a crumpled and dirty paper bag onto the table.  
“Morning, breakfast.”  
Bolin goes for the bag first, and his face falls when he looks inside.  
“Bro, what is this?”  
Mako stops, and looks at his brother, eyebrow raised.  
“Bean curd puffs?”  
“Oh okay cool… except that’s not what this is.”  
“Excuse me?”  
You lean over to where Bolin is holding the bag open and out for you to see.  
“Mako, this is just flattened fried dough and bean curd mixed up in a bag? WHat happened?”  
“Plus what’s up with the bag? It’s nasty and barely holding together?”  
He scoffs.  
“Jeez, ungrateful much?”  
“Sorry sorry, you’re right. Thank you for getting us food.”  
He begins to walk away again.  
“Except, one last question… How do we eat the bread and bean curd paste?”  
“Ah- not the last question, you also look rough, seriously what happened?”  
He rolls his eyes and kinda ducks into his scarf.  
“I don’t know Bolin, with your hands? And if you must know… I may have got hit by a moped this morning…”  
You and Bolin shoot up.  
“WHat?”  
“Are you okay? Did you see who did it?”  
He averts his eyes, and goes deeper into his scarf.  
“I did…”  
“Mako that reaction is concerning, who was it?”  
A pause.  
“Her name is Asami… I’m meeting her at Kwong’s later tonight..”  
Bolin’s face lights up, his face slowly stretching into a grin.  
“Mako… Are you going on a date?”  
He doesn’t respond and your eyes widen.  
“No way, you’re going on a date with the girl that hit you with her moped?!”  
He starts to walk away.  
“Wait, but I could’ve sworn you liked K-”  
You are being tackled, thrown behind the couch with Mako’s hands blocking your mouth.  
“I don’t know what you’re about to say but it’s stupid and wrong.”  
“MMRPH!”  
“Mako has a crush on someone?! That isn’t this Asami lady, and Y/N you didn’t tell me? I’m hurt!”  
You’re reaching around to try and tickle Mako to get him to loosen up off you, while Bolin attacks from behind. He’s surrounded and defenseless.  
“St-STop! You know I hate th-at!”  
He says behind pained laughter, Bolin finally pushes Mako off you, and throws you over his shoulder as he runs across the room. Reaching the complete opposite side, he stands you up and grabs your shoulders.  
“Who. Does. Mako. Like?”  
Mako chucks a pillow, hitting Bolin square on the side of his face.  
“Can you guys grow up? You’re not little kids!”  
“Technically we are kids, in the eyes of the law. So, no.”  
You side eye Mako, and begin to open your mouth to speak, taking in an exaggerated breath.  
“Y/N if you say another word I swear I will tell Bolin everything!”  
You snap your mouth shut, face flushed instantly. Bolin’s eyes widened.  
“No! My brother and my best friend keeping secrets? Where’s the loyalty? The trust?”  
He feigns being wounded, and collapses against a wall behind him dramatically. Mako walks by and hits him with another pillow before leaving the room exasperated. Bolin pouts and looks up at you through his eyelashes, fluttering them.  
“Y/N, pleaseeee?”  
You make a zipping motion across your lips. He’s about to say something when a clock on their wall dings, signalling that it’s Eleven in the morning. Your face falls, and you look at him in horror.  
“I haven’t been home in two in a half days, and I didn’t tell dad anything.”  
And without another word, Bolin helps you gather your stuff, and lets you get a handful of what was bean curd puffs out of the bag before you sprint out of their apartment and out of the gym.

You’re speed walking through Republic City, so it only takes you like twenty minutes to get to the shop. You walk up to find your father washing graffiti off the front window, what’s not washed off looks like it’s probably a slur about earth benders. You’re upset but considering the amount of people you saw at that rally last night you aren’t surprised. You walk over and start washing the window with him, and he stops and looks at you. Without another word he wraps you in his arms in the tightest bear hug he’s ever given you. He’s crying, and you’re crying a little. You finish washing the window and you both go inside, closing the shop for the day. He gets all the emotional bits out of the way, the I miss you’s and I love you’s etc. etc. He sits you down, and looks at you.  
“Where on earth have you been?!”  
You give a deep sigh and begin retelling the events from the last couple of nights, leaving out some of the more embarrassing details. In the middle of this he gets up and starts some tea to calm your nerves a bit, your hands shake as you reprocess it all. And by the time you're done and he’s all caught up you’re crying again, and he reaches across the table to hold your hands.  
“If you had asked me i would not have let you go, but I understand that you needed to help and I’m very proud of you for being so brave. But I also think as a parent I need to punish you somehow for putting your life in danger so recklessly.”  
You nod your head.  
“How about… for a week or two you get to clean the studio of all the old clay, slip (Water and clay mixture, it’s super gross), and the dust and stuff. Sound good? Or I guess, bad? Punishments are supposed to be bad.”  
You laugh a little bit.  
“I’m not very good at this am I?”  
“No, no you’re not. But cleaning your side of the studio does sound awful, so don’t feel too bad.”  
You both spend a good while at that kitchen table laughing. He makes some food, and then you both go back to the shop and open it back up. While he mans the front, you begin cleaning the studio, and you were right it sucks. Your dad is so messy, you can’t even waterbend the slip away because it’s been left there so long it’s just gross clay.

Three hours later you’re done, at least tomorrow won’t be that bad. You walk back into the main shop, absolutely filthy. You let your dad know you’re done, and make your way towards the stairs so you can bathe. Twice, once to get all the clay dust off but because doing that will create a tub full of more slip, you’ll have to bathe again. Plus all the time it’ll take to get your hair feeling actually clean. You get halfway up the stairs when the shop store slams open.  
“Woah, hey Bolin, careful on the door!”  
Bolin? You start to go down the stairs when you see Bolin already at the bottom.  
“Hey Bo, where’s the fire?”  
“M-Mako’s date toni-tonight! We have to, to help him!”  
Bolin says between heavy breaths. Did he run here?  
“Help him with what?”  
“Getting! Hah, ha, getting ready!”  
“He needs help getting ready?”  
“YES!”  
Seems legit. You follow Bolin, and you’re almost out of the shop when your dad stops you.  
“Where are you going and when will you be back?”  
You should have expected this.  
“I’m going to Mako and Bolin’s place to help him get ready for his date tonight. I do not know when I will be back, but at the latest tomorrow morning.”  
“He’s hopeless!”  
He nods and you and Bolin book it out of there.  
You both make it into the apartment, and run into Mako’s room and what greets you would be very funny if not for the ticking clock leading up to his date. Mako is socks, underwear and a tuxedo top. His hair is slicked all the way down, and he looks stressed.  
“Spirits Bolin you were right… Mako what happened?”  
“I’m just trying to get ready… It’s a fancy place, I have to look fancy…”  
“It’s also a date and you need to actually look like yourself! She asked you out after you got hit with a car-”  
“Moped.”  
“Moped! And right now you look…”  
You grimace and kinda gesture your hands at him, and he knits his eyebrows together. He and Bolin sit on Mako’s bed as you go to dig through his closet and dresser. You throw his dad's scarf at him, and throw his nicest clothes onto his bed, to replace the tuxedo he rented. You dig out shoes.  
“This is basically what I was wearing this morning?”  
“Because it’s you. Now I’m not going to dress you, and I’m gonna trust that it’s all clean. If it’s not that is your fault. Me and Bolin will be in the other room.”  
You and Bolin leave and sit on the couch, but you’re in there for less than five minutes when Mako walks out his room. And he looks better, but not great. You and Bolin stand, and hands on your chins walk around him.  
“Bolin, what’s wrong with this picture?”  
You both stop in front of Mako. Bolin reaches forward and messes Mako’s hair, and then steps back next to you, and squints.  
“Not quite there…”  
You reach forward and pop his collar over his scarf. Now he looked like Mako. You and Bolin both nod. The face Mako makes is a mixture of confused, annoyed, and grateful for the help. You watch him frantically gather his things and out the door he goes.  
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him show any emotions other than awkward and stressed.”  
“Sometimes he’s angry or quietly sympathetic, but only on special occasions.”

About two hours later, you got to bathe at their place, and put on an old shirt and shorts of Bolin’s.  
“Okay Bo, on the count of three, turn your paper around.”  
He doesn’t look up, but continues to scribble. You also do the last finishing touches to your drawing.  
“Three… two… one!”  
You both flip around your papers, and you admit, you’ve drawn his face several times. So you could say you had a bit of an advantage in this little game. You were drawing each other, which when you two are alone, you do a lot. Bolin loves drawing games, which doesn’t make a lot of sense since he almost always loses. He drew a really good turtle duck once, totally kicked your ass. And when Bolin turns his paper around, it looks how you expected it to look. A little lopsided, proportions a little wonky, dark pencil marks and dark smudging where his hand dragged across the page. But better than last time. He’s gotten a lot better at hair. But even if you both tried very very hard, you were both still busting a gut laughing on the floor about this or that that looked ridiculous. Watching him laugh was like a gift handed to you by the spirits, the way his eyes squeeze shut and his nose wrinkles up. His laugh is one of those loud, deep, open mouth laughs. It gets that warm feeling going in your stomach. Your laugh is more like miming almost, silent and weezing, hands moving around like a deranged turtle seal. The volume of his laugh makes up for the silence in yours, a perfect pair. At least, you thought so. Besides drawing games, you and Bolin had several activities you enjoyed when it was just the toy of you. Learning new recipes, you both couldn’t really cook but your dad cooking all the time grew in you a deep love for food, and Bolin had a similar love. So you two would attempt to cook for the end when you both would get to eat. Your best so far has been cabbage noodles, Bolins personal favorite, and his best was fried dough. Together you almost have a full meal. You also liked to dance. Not actual dancing of course you both aren’t learning and practicing say, the charleston, rather making up your own dances. Moving in whatever way the music moved your bodies. It had been a while since the two of you hung out by yourselves, you usually had at least Mako there to be the impulse control.  
If you both got antsy and wanted to go out on the town to hang out, you had several options. You two had a habit of just showing up at any event you happened to run into, to keep things interesting and fresh. But you had some regulars as well. You could go to the shopping district, and do some window shopping, maybe try on whatever suits your fancy. You liked to feed turtle ducks and other wildlife at the Republic City park. You’ve also gotten a little tipsy and played hide and seek in the park, it’s really only fun tipsy. Sometimes you’ll go to pro bending matches, cheer for whoever. Bolin likes to attempt to train you, it doesn’t usually go well but you have your strengths and you both have fun. There was a noodle shop nearby that you both frequented when you had the yuans to spare, usually saved for celebrating or comforting the other.  
“Bolin that, that looks better than last time?”  
You say through laughter, and he grins.  
“You made my head look like a square!”  
You weeze, tears forming.  
“I drew what I saw!”  
“So did I!”  
You missed this. It’s been a lot of you and Mako time since the pro bending started, entertaining all his fangirls. That stopped recently, and while you don’t know why, you had hopes. Wishes. Dreams. Whatever, you’ve been trying very hard not to look too deep into it. Your laughter had slowly started to taper off into those happy sighs you get right before the silence, and you roll over to look at him.  
“I missed this Bo, it’s been too long…”  
“Yeah man! I forgot how fun this was! All the pro bending stuff has kept us pretty busy.”  
“Yeah…”  
You’re just looking at each other now, the music on the radio playing softly in the background. Moonlight shines in through the windows, and candles light the rest. It’s peaceful. Pabu has been asleep for a little while, so it really is just you and him. You’re chewing on the inside of your cheek as you study him, and it’s almost like a game of possum chicken, neither of you really willing to look away first. You want to say something, you need to, you need to break this silence as comfortable as it may be. You don’t want to risk losing his friendship, but his lips look so soft… You open your mouth, and a sound interrupts your train of thought. His stomach doesn’t have to try hard to growl loud enough to break the silence and catch some attention. He looks kind of embarrassed and you laugh, the tension leaving the atmosphere. You lift yourself up and hold your hand out to him.  
“Let’s make some noodles and shut your stomach up.”

You sit up, and stretch, blinking a couple of times to get used to the light in the room. There’s some noise in the other room, the clanking of pans and the sound of oil popping. Once your eyes adjust you look around, you must’ve fallen asleep sometime last night and Bolin moved you to his room. He’s nowhere to be seen, but you’re in his room, in his bed, and wearing one of his shirts to sleep in. Everything around you smells like him, and it makes you want to snuggle yourself back up into the bed. Plus, you don’t usually get to sleep in at your place so the extra sleep is definitely welcome. But once again your attempts at sleep are cut short when Bolin bursts into the room, plate of fried dough in his hand. That really is all he knows how to cook. But he flops himself onto the bed and you two eat breakfast together, which Mako promptly joins. All three of you sit on Bolin’s bed eating fried dough in your pajamas. You and Bolin give each other a look, and both of you turn your attention to Mako.  
“Sooooo how’d your date go?”

A couple days later.  
You look up at just the biggest house you’ve ever seen. Bolin is also standing there, almost as dumbfounded as you as Mako stands beside the both of you arms crossed. You both look at him, mouths still perpetually open.  
“So… your new girlfriend is rich…”  
“And her dad created the satomobile…”  
“Yep.”  
“And she just offered to pay for our entry into the championship?”  
Mako nods, looking a little smug about it. Bolin goes from shocked to grinning. You however are still confused.  
“And she offered, why? Because she’s a fan? Because money is literally nothing to her? Because you’re her boyfriend?”  
He kinda raises an eyebrow at you, not understanding where this is going.  
“Mako what on earth did you DO to this girl?”  
He blushes and Bolin bursts out laughing. He slaps Bolin on the back to try to get him to stop laughing and then leads the both of you to the huge front doors. He knocks twice on the doors, hard. Hard enough to echo through the house through the thick material of the doors. A man opens the door, well dressed so you want to assume a servant of some kind but don’t say anything besides a friendly greeting just in case that’s her dad. You and Bolin walk in behind Mako, letting him lead the way, since he’s obviously been there before. You lean over discreetly to Bolin, and whisper.  
“Should we have dressed fancier?”  
“I don’t… think so? Mako would’ve told us I think…”  
You both turn, distracted by your not discreet discreet conversation.  
“Mako!”  
From the top of the very large ornate staircase, stands a girl waving at you, and you can only hope this is Asami. She runs down the stairs and her and Mako hug. Yep, this has to be Asami. Who else does Mako hug? Spirits she’s gorgeous too, like some kind of model or a member of royalty.  
“And you guys must be… hold on let me guess! I’m gonna take a leap and say this is Bolin?”  
“Yes! How’d you guess?”  
“Mako told me about you! And you, hm. Water tribe, Korra?”  
Your face falls a little bit.  
“I… guess I got that one wrong…”  
Mako steps in, hand on Asami’s shoulder.  
“This is Y/N, not on the team but one of our friends.”  
“It’s nice to meet you.”  
She reaches a hand out to meet yours, and you shake.  
“Nice to meet you too! Sorry about that, I thought he was just bringing the team.”  
She awkwardly smiles.  
“Come, follow me! We can talk more in the drawing room!”  
Your eyes light up.  
“Oh I love drawing!”  
Mako does a small grimace, and Asami gives you another awkward smile.  
“That’s great! It’s not really for drawing, though I’m sure you could… anyways!”  
You fall behind in the group as Asami leads you through her home, and place your face in your hands. You really didn’t want to embarrass yourself here… Bolin pats your back sympathetically. You get to the drawing room, stupid name, and the only word that comes to mind is lavish. You and Bolin sit on one couch while Mako and Asami sit on the other one facing you. The man from before comes in and she tells him to do something, guess he is a servant. You all look at eachother silently for a moment, when Bolin attempts to start any kind of conversation.  
“So, uh, Mako said you offered to pay for the Fire Ferret’s to join the championship? Is that for real?”  
She smiles.  
“We’ve more than offered, we’ve already done it! I was actually hoping to fit the whole team so we could order the new uniforms but that can wait…”  
“New uniforms?”  
“Yeah, my father’s only request was that all the uniforms say Future Industries on them!”  
Honestly? For 30,000 yuans, it feels fair.  
“Can I ask why?”  
They all look at you.  
“Well, I’ve been a fan for sometime and when Mako told me the team wasn’t going to get to play, I had to do something.”  
“That’s really nice of you.”  
“Well thank you! I’m just excited to see them play!”  
She smiles at you, and you give a small smile back. You don’t know why, you can tell she’s trying and you’re trying, but this feels really… forced. The room grows quiet again. Mako coughs.  
“So, you said the drawing room isn’t for drawing, what is it for?”  
Yes Mako, good question!  
“Well, a drawing room is a room specifical for entertaining guests and making small talk, I couldn’t tell you why the name though!”  
She laughs, a light laugh, reminds you of windchimes.  
“Just a weird rich people thing?”  
She laughs again, louder this time.  
“Yes, exactly!”  
You smile, this time genuine. Maybe this’ll be okay.  
“So, you said you like drawing?”  
“Yeah, my father and I run a pottery shop so I’ve grown up around art, but instead of pottery I ended up connecting more to traditional, like drawing and watercolors.”  
“Oh that sounds really nice! I’d love to see your work, and the shop! Another weird rich people thing, but my father actually collects art. Do you want to see?”  
You involuntarily stand.  
“Yes!”  
Asami then walks you back through her gigantic house, until you reach the art. It’s amazing, a room longer than it is wide, with statues and sculptures, paintings and drawings lining the walls in simple yet ornate frames.  
“So, do you have a favorite artist?”  
“Uh… I don’t really have a lot of education with the famous ones, just local stuff… so I’d have to say my dad.”  
“That’s really nice! Well, I hope you like this, you’re welcome any time.”  
You walk up to a beautiful painting, depicting two lovers meeting at the center of a bridge. You’re in love, immediately. It’s wonderful, and the colors a wonderful contrast between warm and cold colors, the scenery is detailed without feeling busy, the values and balance…  
“Would you like me to tell you about this one?”  
You look at her wide eyed and nod your head. For a big chunk of the night, you effectively steal Mako’s girlfriend as you two talk art. 

Once you were torn away from the art, Asami let you all know about a gala that was being held for the avatar, and that you three were invited. You were excited, but unsure if you had anything fancy enough for that. You think Asami noticed, because she almost begged you to go shopping with her.  
“Come on! It’ll be so fun, just a girls day! I’ve never had another girl’s opinion before, and you’re one of Mako’s best friends, I want to spend some time with you! And don’t worry, it’ll all be on me, it’s the least I can do for new friends right?”  
You knew what she was doing, but she did it in a way where you didn’t feel too bad about the gift. Or, gifts. You had no idea what you were getting into.  
You were in your fifth, maybe sixth store, and they were all stores you had never even been in. They served you drinks while you shopped! You were trying very hard not to be overwhelmed, but Asami already had a lot of the backseat packed with bags and boxes. She had found this gorgeous floor length form fitting gown in her signature deep burgundy. It had a wide ribbon around the waist and a matching sheer shawl with a small but very pretty broach. She had found matching jewelry to go with it already, now she was just trying to help you shop. This store was specifically an accessory store, and you found a necklace you just could not help but come back to. It was on a silver chain, with small blue crystals leading up to one large blue jewel, framed in more smaller crystals and silver twisted and shaped around it. It was gorgeous, the brightest blue you had ever seen. And by your third time coming by and looking at it, Asami caught on. She had this amazing talent of picking up on subtle body language cues and acting on them, not making you go through the trouble of asking, effectively helping to spare some of your pride. She picked it up, and held it up to your neck.  
“Yes, perfect! This fits you so well, and now that we have a starting piece it’ll be easier to put together the rest of your outfit around it!”

You had given your dad the rundown, letting him know that Mako’s new girlfriend was coming over. You let him know who she was so he could stress now and then be fine when she got there, and that she was going to help you get ready. She was then going to drive you to Mako and Bolin’s place, and then all go to the gala. As you got in the bath, he went downstairs to clean. Again. And not so subtly put what he thought were his best pieces front and center. You were just getting out of the bath when you heard the front bell ring. You could hear them talking, Asami making polite conversation with your dad as he asked her all sorts of questions. You grabbed a robe and went to the door to the stairs.  
“Asami, I’m up the stairs!”  
“Oh, ok! It was nice meeting you Mr. Y/L/N!”  
And she rushes up the stairs, a large bag slung over her shoulder. She sets it down and hugs you. Her hair is silky and fixed so that it flows over her shoulders like a pitch black waterfall, and her dress looks just as great as you remember, paired with stunning pinpoint precision makeup. She’s even more stunning than your used to, and you blush slightly. And immediately start to ramble.  
“I’m sorry about my dad he’s just excited, and my place is so small-”  
“Oh no need! I think your shop is so cute and your dad is great! You’ll have to show me where all your art is but right now we need to get to work!”  
You and Asami make small talk, tell stories, make jokes, and overall have a great time getting you ready. The dress you had picked to go with your necklace is a silk blue strapless floor length gown, mermaid shaped with a sweetheart neckline, making sure the largest of the jewels of your necklace rests comfortably between your breasts and accentuating your collar bone. The dress has silver embroidery at the top and at the bottom, and you’re wearing silver elbow length gloves. Because the dress reaches the floor, you were able to get away with comfortable silver flats. Asami styles your hair similar to her’s, long and flowing, but with extra bounce thanks to your curls. You forget how long your hair actually is with the way you usually wear it. She gives you sharp winged eyeliner with silver eyelids and instead of blue or silver, deep purple lips. The finishing touch is a silver hair piece she had insisted on, pulling your hair out of your face on one side. You’ve never been this dolled up in your life, but you’re really digging it. You could consider doing this more often, not floor length gowns 24/7 but maybe light makeup and fixed up hair. All in all it's not a traditional water tribe look, but you’ve never been very traditional. You do a little twirl in front of Asami for the final approval, and make your way down the stairs. You give another twirl for your dad, and he tears up a little before seeing the two of you off.  
The next stop is the boy’s place, and remembering how Mako dealt with getting ready for his date, hoping the place isn’t a wreck for Asami’s sake. But surprisingly enough they’re both cleaned up, properly dressed and ready to go when you both get there. Mako looks good, and you smile at seeing his father’s scarf turned into a cravat for the night. And Bolin, wow, Bolin cleans up nicely for sure. He puts a bit of effort in his usual appearance so you thought you’d gotten used to him looking nice, but this is a whole new level. He has a form fitting waistcoat on, and a jacket that showcases his broad shoulders. The way he wears his pants isn’t really new, the loose fitting look is a part of him almost. But his hair is shiny and slicked back, one little curl at his forehead refusing to be tamed in the cutest way. And when your eyes meet your heart almost stops, and you watch him look you up and down. He had a look about him, almost like he was admiring your revealed figure. You’re sure you're imagining that though, he’s just looking at the dress that’s all, it’s pretty fancy. He had a shine in his eyes as he came closer, and you have to remind yourself how breathing works. How does breathing work again? Oh spirits. Your back is pressed against the car as he reaches around you to open the back door. He’s so unbelievably close you can smell his aftershave. You might actually die, are you imagining this? He gestures at the now open back seat with a charming grin.  
“Nice duds, is that necklace new?”  
You climb into the backseat, followed by Bolin.  
“Yeah, Asami took me shopping. You look…”  
What word to use here? Handsome, stunning, beautiful, sexy, amazing, there’s so many that come to mind, but you settle.  
“Good. Your outfit looks new too, when did you get those?”  
“Spent the extra yuans from the tournament savings, since that’s taken care of.”  
“Oh good…”  
You lean over to whisper to him and Mako and Asami get in the front seats.  
“Hey Bolin?”  
“Yeah?”  
“We’ve danced before, but I don’t actually know how to dance dance, ya know?”  
He laughs behind his hand.  
“Me neither, we’ll figure it out when we get there.”  
You both smile and you lean back over to your side of the seat, blushing at the thought. You look up and make eye contact with Asami through the rearview mirror, and the sparkle in her eye tells you everything. You blush even harder and turn to look at the passing cars the rest of the drive.  
The four of you walk in, Asami and Mako arm in arm as you follow them into the crowded room. It’s huge with high ceilings and a dance floor. You’d been in places like this before, but never on purpose or because you were invited, just you and Bolin crashing events. You feel very out of your element.  
“Oh, guys look there’s my dad! We should stop and say hi before we hit the dance floor!”  
“Hey, Asami! Korra is over there too!”  
You walk up with the group and Mako gives Korra a small wave, as to not interrupt the conversation. You watch Korra spot Asami on his arm and frown. Oh boy.  
“This is my daughter, Asami.”  
“It’s lovely to meet you. Mako’s told me so much about you.”  
“Really? Because he hasn’t mentioned you at all. How did you two meet?”  
Ohhhhh boy. Bolin leans forward all smiles.  
“Asami crashed into him on her moped.”  
Her face goes from distaste to concern, but only slightly.  
“What? Are you okay?”  
Mako smiles, and puts his hand over Asamis on his arm.  
“I’m fine. More than fine. Mister Sato agreed to sponsor our team, we’re back in the tournament!”  
Bolin gives another big smile and nods along.  
“Isn’t that great?”  
Korra gives back nothing.  
“Yeah, terrific.”  
The guy Korra is with, Counselor Tarrlok, turns her attention to the chief of police, Lin Beifong. Promptly removing the rest of you from the conversation. Asami takes it in stride and introduces you and Bolin to her father.  
“Dad, this is Mako’s brother Bolin, and his other friend Y/N.”  
He shakes both of your hands.  
“I don’t want to take up you kids’ time, I’m sure we’ll see eachother again soon. Go have fun.”  
He then nods his head at us, and goes to talk to other important people. You turn to find Asami and Mako gone, Asami already dragging him to dance. Bolin looks at you and you look back. He has a serious face on, and you know exactly what’s going on. You both give a determined nod, and then dissolve into smiles and giggles as you both go to the long table of food wordlessly. You both are building decadent plates of food, much more food on your plates than anyone else's.  
“So, do you know what was up with Korra earlier?”  
He asks as he piles small cakes onto his plate.  
“Uh, no? Maybe it’s just avatar stuff, this party is for her. Probably a bit overwhelming.”  
He nods.  
“Too overwhelmed to save me a dance do you think?”  
Your stomach drops a little. You have to run on full brain power, and decide to be a little selfish tonight, making a quick decision.  
“Probably, Bo. I doubt she dances at all tonight, all these important and powerful people taking up her time.”  
He kinda deflates a little.  
“Yeah, you’re probably right…”  
You nudge him with your hip.  
“Hey! That doesn’t mean we can’t have fun! Let’s find somewhere to eat all this food and then embarrass ourselves on the dance floor, yeah?”  
He smiles at you.  
“Yeah!”  
A little bit of time later and you’re both sat on the ground by the wall, apparently that table was more of a snack bar and not a buffet table because they didn’t have any tables to sit. You were wondering why the plates were so small… You watch as people dance, a fast and upbeat jazz tune filling the air. You look at Bolin and gesture to the dance floor.  
“I’m too full… can’t dance that fast…”  
You nod your head in agreement. You both sit and watch as people dance through three more dances, before a slower tune starts. You stand yourself up, and stilling your nerves you reach a hand out to him, asking him to dance.  
“It’s slower, so it’ll be easier to make up as we go! Plus I’m getting stiff sitting on the floor like this.”  
You smile at him, and he accepts your hand, and not letting go, leads you both to the dance floor with an excited grin on his face. You both get onto the floor, and follow the example of the people around you. A hand on his shoulder, a hand in his. His hand reaches around to your hip and pulls you closer as the music starts up, and you’re already blushing. You both watch and follow the dance steps of the people around you, until you have the movements pretty much figured out. Your bodies fit against each other like a glove, the two of you working and moving together like a well oiled machine. You can feel the heat of his hand through your glove, making you seriously regret gloves at all. You both move and sway to the music, and you can’t help but study his face. His cheekbones, his jawline, that cute little curl. His well shaped brows and long eyelashes surrounding glittering green eyes. His round prominent nose, and the cupid’s bow of his soft and very inviting lips… Look away from his lips before he catches you staring. You meet his eyes and he smiles at you, showing off his dimples. Sweet spirits his dimples, this boy will literally be the death of you. You decide not to try to talk, to interrupt this soft, comfortable silence between the two of you. And surprisingly enough, neither does he. The two of you are bad at quiet, but with the soft music guiding you both, it’s an afterthought. You two have danced before, sure, but never like this. Never this close. You two end up following that dance with another, and another, both of you helping each other learn the varied dance steps. You both laughed and stu,bled and joked your way through the rest of the faster dances. Dancing together came so naturally, you barely noticed how late it was when Mako and Asami got the both of you to go home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Incase you couldn't tell my LOK crushes go 1.Bolin 2. Asami 3.Korra and THEN Mako. Something about himbos and strong women....


	5. Heart Break Central

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's THAT episode.

You’re on cloud nine, have been since the Gala. It cemented some thoughts, some wishes you’ve had. Inspired you, both in an art sense and in an action sense. You know you didn’t imagine the way he looked at you, once the shop closes for the night you’ll be taking Mako’s advice and finally confessing. You feel like you have bumble flies buzzing around under your skin and in your stomach. You’ve been fumbling pots and miscounting change, your mind distracted, and your dad can tell. He comes up behind you and places a hand on your shoulder.  
“Hon, are you okay? You seem distracted, everything all right?”  
He genuinely looks concerned, but talking to him about boys, especially ones he knows? Nope. Not happening, too embarrassing by far.   
“Yeah! Just thinking about the Pro-Bending Championship, worried about them I guess.”  
You lie through your teeth. He visibly doesn’t believe you, but doesn’t press any further. You’d tell him when you were ready.

You climb the steps to the boy’s little apartment, and can smell food. You pick up the pace and knock on the door, hoping you didn’t miss dinner. Mako opens the door, flour dotting his face and parts of his apron. A birthday present from you and dad. You grin at him, and you can hear Bolin shouting further into the room.  
“Am I too late for food?”  
“Nope, still cooking.”  
You follow Mako in, and look at Bolin who is currently trying to wrestle Pabu into a small tub of water.  
“Hey Bo! Need any help with that?”  
“Nope, This is between me and Pabu.”  
He looks so determined you let out a small laugh. Mako calls out from the kitchenette.  
“If you’re offering help, I could use it with the veggies!”  
“You got it boss!”  
You walk over and wash your hands, and you lean a little to him so you can whisper, though you doubt Bolin could overhear with the amount of noise he’s making.  
“I think I’m telling him tonight.”  
Mako’s eyes widen, but gives you a little nod and a thumbs up, all wrapped up nicely with a small discreet smile. He passes you some vegetables and a knife and you get to work. You hear the splash of water as Bolin gets Pabu in the tub long enough to be wet, no where close to clean.  
“Work with me here, Pabu! You wanna look spic and span in your new unifrom don’t you?”  
“Oh you guys got the new uniforms?”  
“Yeah! Asami even got one for Pabu!”  
“Oh he’ll look so cute.”  
“If I can get him clean!”  
The room settles into a comfortable silence as the three of you go about your tasks, until Bolin clears his throat.  
“So, what do you guys think of Korra? In like a ‘girlfriend’ sort of way?”  
You almost cut yourself at how quickly that one word brings your body to a halt, and you see Mako looking at you from the corner of both of your eyes.  
“She’s great! But I think it makes more sense for me to go for Asami.”  
He tries to laugh it off, but the uncomfort is real. Bolin rolls his eyes.  
“I was talking about a girlfriend for me! Leave some ladies for the rest of us!”  
Mako sighs, and your throat is tightening.  
“I know, that’s what I thought you meant.”  
“Well…?”  
Your world is closing in around you, your head swirling with anxiety and doubt. Did you actually imagine the Gala? The way he looked at you? Were you looking too deep into things, jumping to conclusions?   
“I don’t know, Bo. It doesn’t seem like a good idea for you to date Korra.”  
“You just said she was great two seconds ago!”  
Mako stops what he’s doing and turns to look at Bolin, hand rubbing the back of his neck.  
“Yeah, Korra is a great athlete and the avatar and stuff, but I don’t know if she’s really ‘girlfriend material’. She’s more like a pal.”  
Does he actually believe this or is all this talk for your sake? Before Asami you could’ve sworn Mako had liked Korra…  
“Hey, Y/N, back me up here! What do you think?”  
You squeeze your eyes tight and will the shake from your voice.  
“I don’t know, Bo… I think I’m with Mako here, but if you like her…”  
“You’re both nuts! Korra and I are perfect for each other: She’s strong, I’m strong; She’s fun, I’m fun; She’s beautiful, I’m gorgeous! Okay I don’t care what you guys think, I’m gonna ask Korra out.”   
As his list goes on, you watch tears hit the vegetables you had been cutting. Are you not strong enough, or fun? He’s your best friend, have you been boring him? Are you not pretty enough? Korra is beautiful, he's right, and he is gorgeous… Have you been shooting too high, is he out of your league? Your head won’t stop swirling with anxiety and questions.  
“Look, it just isn’t smart to date a teammate, especially during the tournament. Keep your head out of the clouds and your priorities straight, okay?”  
“Yeah, yeah, I know, gah!”  
Spirits please be the end of this conversation.  
“You know what I’m talking about, Pabu, I’m talking about real love.”  
That does it, the final straw. You cough a little, clearing your throat.  
“I, um, I forgot to clean the studio, I’m, I’m gonna go, I’ll see you both… later”  
And you rush out of there. You’re running down the stairs and you’re crying, your eyes burn. Real love? Does he really feel like that, about her? She hasn’t even been around that long, does he know anything about her? Does she know anything about him? Have they been talking after morning practices, spending time together while you're too busy. Have you been a third wheel? The questions continue as you make your way back to the shop, and you don’t even look at your dad as you run to your bedroom to try and sleep this horrible, aching, pain away.

As worried as you are about the tournament, you sit on one of the benches in the equipment room, numb. You’re not even watching, going through the necessary motions when someone needs healing or tries to talk to you. You fake a smile and politely respond but it only lasts as long as they’re looking at you. Mako tried to check on you, but you gave little away, not wanting to cry before the match. The rounds go by with lightning speed, the Fire Ferrets defeating the Rabaroos with ease. The three of them make their way back into the equipment room and you greet them with smiles that don’t reach your eyes and cheers that don’t reach your heart. Mako gives you another look, but goes to his locker to change, and Korra heads that way. And you admit, you’re definitely eavesdropping.  
“Wow, we were really connecting out there in that ring!”  
“Yeah! You know, I feel like the two of us have been connecting really well out of the ring, too.”  
You can’t see his face but having seen it so many times, you can imagine his furrowed brow at that sudden tone shift.  
“Uh, sure.”  
“So, I was thinking we should spend some time together.”  
Oh boy…  
“Oh we’ve been spending lots of time together.”  
Oh poor clueless Mako. At least in that aspect you can relate.  
“I mean outside of the gym, and now while searching for kidnapped family members or fighting chi blockers.”  
He sucks his teeth, and turns around.  
“I don’t know, Asami and I have-”  
She very suddenly gets in his face.  
“Look, I really like you and I think we were meant for each other!”  
Subtle. Korra almost as quickly backs off and hides her blushing face in her arm. Maybe you shouldn’t be hearing this...   
“Korra, I’m really sorry, but I just don’t feel the same way about you.”  
Her face falls, and as jealous of her as you are, you feel a tinge of sympathy for her, being in kinda the same situation…  
“Forget I ever said anything…”  
Before the three of you can mentally recover from that, Asami and Pabu walk into the room, and straight to Mako.  
“Congratulations, guys! You were so amazing out there.”  
She kisses his cheek, right in front of Korra, completely unaware. Ouch. Korra walks over to sit on the bench next to you, and you try your best to look innocent. You think of comforting her, maybe you both can have a girl’s night, crying about boys and eating too much desserts. Before you can console her, Bolin makes himself comfortable on the other side of her.  
“Soooo Korra? I was thinking, you and me, we could get some dinner together, sort of a date situation.”  
You do not want to be here for this, don’t want to hear him ask another girl out, and you do not want to hear the rejection. He’ll be devastated, and you emotionally aren’t able.  
“Oh, that’s really sweet, but I don’t think so. I don’t feel very date-worthy…”  
“Are you kidding me? You’re the smartest, funniest, toughest, buffest, talented-est, incredible-est girl in the world!”  
You can’t hear this, you’re up and moving halfway through his sentence. Korra gives a small chuckle, please be kind to him Korra.  
“You really feel that way about me?”  
“I felt that way since the moment I saw you! Trust me, I know we’re gonna have so much fun together!”  
You are at the door.  
“You know what? I could use some fun. Okay, sure!”  
Not that nice to him Korra! How can she bounce back so quickly after that?  
You and Mako make eye contact as you leave, his face sympathetic, Asami a little confused. Bolin cheers, and you’re running out of the gym. 

You’ve been confined to your bed for a day and a half now, your dad not bothering to try and wake you up to help with the store. You can still hear all the sounds from the store, the walls being thin and small, sound travels. You just lie there, listening. Someone comes into the store, and starts talking to your father. Wait, it sounds familiar. You get up and walk down to the store, bed head and messy pajamas be damned. You get down there, and find Asami talking to your dad, when they both turn to you.  
“Hey hon, I was just about to come and check on you.”  
“Hi Y/N, you doing okay?”  
You cock an eyebrow at her.  
“What do you know about it?”  
“Enough. Mako told me you were feeling down, thought I’d try to help?”  
You flippantly scoff.  
“Good luck with that.”  
Your dad is silent through this, the store is small, but he attempts to give you a semblance of privacy.  
“Come on Y/N, just let me try? You don’t have to tell me what’s wrong, but let me try to cheer you up.”  
You look at her, silent. Her eyes are pleading, and your dad coughs.  
“The store’s been pretty slow today, it won’t miss you much, if that’s what you’re worried about…”  
You give them both a look, and turn to start going up the stairs.  
“Wait, Y/N, please!”  
“Can I not change?”  
She grins at you.  
“No need!”  
You are then dragged by the arm to her Sato Mobile, and begin making your way through the city. You eventually reach her home, still shocked by just how large it is. You’re led to her bedroom, and she collapses on her huge four poster bed.   
“Make yourself at home!”  
You collapse next to her. You both just lay there for a minute, quiet as you stare up into the canopy over her bed.  
“So… you totally don’t have to tell me, but what’s up? Anything I can do to help? Money is no problem if it-”  
“I have feelings for Bolin.”  
She processes that for a moment.  
“And he went on a date with Ko-”  
“And he went on a date with Korra!”  
Then it just keeps coming, everything. How long you’ve liked him, what you like about him, when you knew you liked him, all of it. And you’re crying around your words, trying to make them intelligible, but if Asami can’t understand you she doesn’t let on. She has some tissues brought up at some point, you honestly didn’t notice until there were tissues in your hands.   
“And she doesn’t even like him!”  
“Wait, but why did she agree to go out then?”  
“I don’t know! I heard her talking, and she likes-”  
You pause and look at Asami.  
“Someone else, but I guess he rejected her and I think is trying to make him jealous? But she’s just gonna hurt him, and it’s gonna mess the team up and I just-”  
You continue crying. She grabs both of your hands.  
“I’ve never had a girl friend before, how do you want me to respond here? Are we angry with her, or maybe with Bolin? Just say the word I’m on your side.”  
“Why? Why do you care?”  
“Mako is important to me, you’re important to Mako, so you’re important to me! Plus, again, never had a girl friend before, really hoping we can be close good friends.”  
She smiles at you, and it looks so genuine. You lunge forward and hug into her chest crying.  
“I. Would also. Like. To be. Friends!”  
You say between sobs.   
“Okay, so who are we mad at? I will give the coldest shoulder to either of them, making you cry like this!”  
You give a wet chuckle.  
“Neither of them, if they’re happy I’ll get over this. Eventually. Fuck, I really thought he liked me back for a second, at the g-”  
“At the Gala? I did too, you two danced all night I honestly thought you might have been together already but, guess not.”  
“I knew I wasn’t imagining things!”  
You sit there silent for a moment.  
“I feel better, having talked it all out.”  
“I’m glad, but I had so many activities planned, if I had known just talking-”  
“What activities?”  
“Desserts, and a spa, maybe some shopping? Doing makeovers maybe?”  
You nod your head quickly.  
“I would like to do all of these things.”

You decided to sit with Asami for the match instead of sitting in the equipment room. The fact that she sits in this big private luxury box shouldn't surprise you, and yet this is not what you expected. There is some guy in here, that keeps bringing drinks? You aren’t complaining but damn you two have lived extremely different lives. You’ve learned a lot about Asami today, like how she lost her mom. Does nobody around here have a mom? Yours ran off, her’s died, Mako and Bolin’s died, you haven’t asked Korra but? It’s a strange coincidence. And she reads these insanely trashy romance books, like straight fluff. You have several in your bag to read. You got to draw her too, which wow couldn’t have a better model, her bone structure is immaculate. There’s only two seats in the box, which you assume her dad usually sits in, but she assured you he wasn’t coming tonight and that it was free. And besides the immense comfort, you’re glad to be here instead of the equipment room. You don’t even want to see Korra and Bolin, probably acting all cute after their no doubt fantastic date. You try and shake those thoughts out of your head as the match begins. And by watching the way they play, you figure the date either went really bad or they got into a fight, because Mako and Korra are clumsy and distracted, taking Bolin with them. They yell and argue between rounds, it’s a mess. It leads to a tie breaker, which Bolin wins, but they even argue at the coin toss! If the date went badly, why is Bolin still playing and cheering like nothing has happened? You can’t even focus on the win. You excuse yourself from the box to go check on them and see what’s up.

You get to the hallway to the equipment room, but are run past by Bolin, loudy sobbing. You call after him at the same time as Mako, who's running after him. You stop Mako.  
“Mako what the hell is going on?”  
He looks around before answering.  
“Korra kinda… kissed me and Bolin saw?”  
You groan.  
“Good job jackass, let’s go get him.”  
“Jackass? She kissed me!”  
“You couldn’t push her away?”  
“She’s the avatar!”  
You pause, and then shrug your shoulders.  
“Fair. Now can we please go and make sure Bolin is okay?”  
You both head in the direction Bolin ran.

You both get to Narook’s Seaweed Noodlery, Bolin’s favorite restaurant. Comfort Food. You can hear him loudly crying from outside, and you’re about to go in when Mako stops you.  
“Are you sure you want to go in there?”  
“I’m not the one he’s upset with!”  
“But he’s in a state, and if you get emotional, he really doesn’t need-”  
“I’m not going to confess to him right now! He’s my best friend and he just got his heart broken, feelings or not I’m going in there.”  
You go in, and see Bolin slumped on a table surrounded by empty noodle bowls. You hear Mako talking to Narook as you rush over to him.   
“Hey Bo…”  
You lightly pat his arm. Mako catches up.  
“Come on. Wake up. Taking you home, bro.”  
That got his attention, as he looks up at Mako sniffling.  
“Don’t call me that. You’re not my brother! You’re a brother betrayer! The only one I can trust anymore is Pabu! Pabu loves me!”  
He turns and sees you.  
“...And Y/N… Hi Y/N…”  
“Hey Bo, you okay?”  
He shrugs and sniffles some more, wiping his face.  
“You’re a mess, and we’ve got the biggest match of our lives tonight. Let’s go.”  
Mako puts a hand on Bolin, which he quickly slaps away.  
“No! I’m not going anywhere with you, you traitor!”  
“Guess we’ll have to do this the hard way!”  
He goes to grab Bolin, and you jump in front of him.  
“Mako! Do you have any compassion? How can you think of the match when you see your brother like this?”  
“Y/N he’s upset right now, but when he feels better he’s going to regret throwing the tournament away.”  
You stand there, a stubborn look on your face. But as you mill it over, he’s probably right. Even if they still lose, Bolin would be more upset if he didn’t try at all. You move out of his way.  
“Fine.”  
Mako picks him up and Bolin is sobbing.  
“Why?!”  
“Told you dating a teammate was a bad idea.”  
“You’re a bad idea! Put me down!”  
You give him a sympathetic look.  
“I’m sorry Bolin…”  
You’re about to follow them out when Narook clears his throat and gestures to the piles of empty bowls. Shit.

You leave Pabu with Asami, and head to the equipment room. You figure a lot of healing is going to be needed after this. You watch them get hit, and miss throws, arguing and yelling the whole time. It’s horrible to watch. Korra threatens the referee at one point after being called on unnecessary roughness. It looks like they’ve given up. Round three starts and Bolin is immediately hit square in the shoulder, intuition correct. He cries out, distracting Mako long enough to get thrown off the platform, Bolin following closely behind. You go to look over the edge at the lower platform, and see Mako and Bolin talking, though they’re too far away to make out what they could be saying. They aren’t fighting though, so good signs! The three of you silently stand in the equipment room watching as Korra saves the day, winning the game for the fire Ferrets!  
“Yes! She did it!”  
You, Mako, and Bolin celebrate, cheering and jumping, getting in a big group hug, and everything feels semi okay again. You’ll all get through this. Mid-hug Bolin cries out.  
“Shoulder! Shoulder!”  
You both let go of him.  
“Sorry.”  
You wordlessly sit Bolin down and begin healing his shoulder as Korra walks in from the platform.  
“That was… pretty much the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.”  
Mako looks away.  
“Thanks for not giving up on us. We never would have made it this far without you. I owe you. Big time.”  
Korra gives a small shy smile.  
“You’re welcome. So… I know things are confusing right now, but I hope we can still be friends?”  
Mako nods.  
“Definitely.”  
Interrupting the moment, The Wolfbats enter the locker room, followed lastly by Tahno, their captain. He has a look of disgust smeared across his face.  
“Ohh, oof. You guys smell something in here? Wait, I know what that is! Yeah, it’s the scent of losers.”  
Korra is almost immediately up in arms, you guess she’s already been introduced.  
“I hope we see you in the finals. Then we’ll know who the losers really are!”  
Tahno rolls his eyes.  
“Yeah, I’m peeing my pants over here.”  
He scans his eyes over the room, and sets his sights on you as you refuse to look at him while healing Bolin. Bolin attempts to straighten up, but winces.  
“Hey, Y/N. Still playing house with these idiots?”  
You scoff.  
“Eat shit Tahn.”  
He pretends to have been wounded before following the rest of his team out onto the platform. You’re all so distracted that no one notices Asami coming into the room until she surprises Mako with a jumping hug.  
“Great job!”  
She lets go and turns to Korra, side eyeing you for a moment before speaking, just checking your expression.  
“What a comeback, Korra! I’ve never seen a hat trick like that.”  
Korra actually smiles at Asami, nothing like the cold attitude she’d been giving her before.  
“Thanks! But, if it hadn’t been for you and your father, we wouldn’t have had the chance to play. So, thank you.”  
Asami smiles back, and you guess Korra is making her rounds because next she’s next to you and Bolin.   
“How’re you feeling?”  
She asks as she pats him on his back, probably harder than she meant to.  
“Owww! Gah! Haven’t you hurt me enough?”  
Her eyes widen, and looks to you.  
“I’m not done yet, it's a nasty wound, might’ve popped the shoulder out of place if not just a really deep bruise.”  
She sits down on the other side of Bolin and begins bending water out of your bucket, and you raise an eyebrow at her.  
“Relax, I’m a healer! I learned from Katara, the best there is.”  
You have no real need to be jealous of her now, but you can’t help but think ‘Of course she’s a healer!’  
Bolin’s wound starts healing much faster.  
“Bolin, I’m sorry I hurt your feelings. I didn’t mean to let things get so out of hand.”  
Bolin waves a hand at her.  
“Ahh, I’ll be alright. But we had fun together, didn’t we?”  
“I had a great time, honestly! You are one of a kind, Bolin.”  
He sure is.  
“Please, go on. I enjoy praise.”  
He’s joking around, he’s definitely forgiven both of them but he’s still visibly hurt. The announcer calls out the winner, the Wolfbats, and Korra whips her head around.  
“What? How is it over already?”  
You can just see the other team being tended to on stretchers.

Korra later makes her way to you. She’s been dishing out thank you’s and apologies left and right, but you can’t think of why you would need either. As far as you know, she’s oblivious to your feelings.   
“So… Y/N?”  
“Yes?”  
“What was up with you and Tahno a bit ago?”  
She’s completely blind with your feelings for Bo, and Bo’s feelings for her, but of course she notices that.  
“Oh spirit’s… We used to date?”  
She looks completely shocked.  
“You dated that asshole?”  
“We… We all make mistakes.”  
She nods her head at that, but still gives you a quizzical look.  
“Can I ask why? He seems so… and you’re so…?”  
She waves her arms and hands around, like she’s trying to find the words in the air in front of her.  
“No, it’s fine, ugh, okay so. This was three years ago, I was fifteen. And he was, Spirits how do I say this without sounding embarrassing, he was like this bad boy. He had this hair, and his eyes, and his confidence, you know? The teenage dream, there’s a reason he has girls hanging on him constantly. But he’s an ass. He was controlling, and jealous, and wanted me to stop hanging out with the boys. Which I politely replied with Fuck Right Off to. We also had several disagreements about, did you see the other team out there? On stretchers? I thought he was doing too much, it wasn’t necessary, and plus he cheats. There got to a point where we couldn’t speak without having a yelling match about something, anything. So obviously that didn’t last, but he’s been an asshole about it ever since. Does that answer your questions?”  
Korra slowly nods.   
“If he’s a dick to you though, I have so much dirt. If you want it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry there was such a gap between the chapters, I had midterms and I broke my glasses and my new ones are taking for-ev-er to ship so I've been in migraine hell for over a week. But! New chapter, and no promises, but I'm really hoping I get the next chapter out much faster.


	6. The Championship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Though threatened by Amon, the championship still takes place!

You sit in the studio, easel in front of you as dip droplets of water into different pigments and bend them in lines and curves against the parchment. Soft, scratchy music plays from the radio across the room, and Asami sits on the table behind you watching you work. You keep each other silent but comfortable company, while the boys and Korra practice back at the arena. You are painting one of Asami’s vases, it’s large and ornate, with beautiful curves and intricate details in the design. It’s also incredibly heavy and was quite a pain for the two of you to sneak out of her house. You suppose you could’ve painted it at her house, but it was way more fun the way you’d done it. And while Asami’s company is comfortable and familiar at this point, having someone watch you paint so closely is new and nerve racking, and you have been trying to think about other things or focus on the music so you don’t mess up. You don’t know how the team does it, having to play in front of all those people, the pressure of it all. Your thoughts and the quiet are interrupted as the music stops and a man begins to speak through the radio.  
“You’re listening to ‘The Music Hour’! Brought to you by Cabbage Corp, Republic City’s trusted name in technology for over fifty years.”   
“Spirits! Why is the music so much quieter than the announcer?”  
You and Asami laugh and you stretch, rolling your shoulders getting prepared to get back to the painting when the radio announcer is interrupted with loud static.   
“Good Morning, citizens of Republic City. This is Amon.”  
You spill the paints to the ground from how hard you jerk, your body reacting involuntarily to the voice from the radio, its familiarity sending a tidal wave of fear through your bones and your skin.   
“I hope you all enjoyed last night’s pro-bending match, because it will be the last. It’s time for this city to stop worshiping bending athletes as if they were heroes. I am calling on the council to shut down the bending arena and cancel the finals, or else there will be severe consequences.”  
His sentence ends in static, and the radio falls silent. Asami stands from her seat on the table.  
“That was-?”  
“Amon. Yeah.”  
“Do you think the boys heard it?”  
You sigh quietly.  
“I’d like to say no, but probably.”  
You begin cleaning up your paint things.  
“We should go check on them, they’re all probably down and sulking at the gym.”

You and Asami arrive at the gym, only to find another team practicing, your friends nowhere to be found. You ask the team members if they had seen where the Fire Ferrets went, but they claimed not to have seen them at all. You check the apartment, and the noodle shop, and even hit the pottery shop again to see if they went looking for the two of you. With no sign of them, you decide to go wait for them at the apartment, you have the day off anyway. As Asami begins driving you back to the gym before she heads back to her place, you notice the worry sitting square on her face.  
“Asami you need a better poker face.”  
“I’m just worried…”  
“I can tell. They’re fine, don’t worry.”  
You were putting on a brave face, but you were worried too. You know they can handle themselves and you trust Korra to protect them otherwise but…  
“But where could they be? You don’t think they’re doing something dangerous do you?”  
Yes.  
“No! They’re probably just, doing something else?”  
“Very reassuring Y/N.”  
You shrug, every believable lie you had could’ve easily been the stupid truth, and none were reassuring. She pulls the car to a stop in front of the gym.  
“I’d stay but…”  
“Don’t worry! I’ll come get you if something serious is happening, go do what you gotta do.”  
“Thanks, keep me updated!”  
And then Asami pulls the car away, and you make your way to the apartment, and get yourself comfortable in what might as well be your second home. You pace back and forth, fidgeting anxiously as you try to distract yourself but to no avail. An hour or two later, Bolin and Mako walk through the door. You run over and wrap Bolin in a hug, surprising both of them. Bolin relaxes when he realizes it’s you and lowers his arms to hug you back. You both pull back and he holds you at arms length, looking over you worriedly.  
“Hey! What’s up? Is something wrong?”  
“I was going to ask you two the same thing! I don’t know if you two heard the radio broadcast today from Amon, but I was worried and when Asami and I came to check you guys were nowhere to be found! She had to go home but I wanted to stay and wait. Are you guys okay? Where were you guys?”  
All three of you sit down and they tell you where they went. You felt shock and relief to find out the three of them trekked out to City Hall to address what Amon said, and argue their case. Honestly, you don’t think the tournament should continue because you don’t want anybody to get hurt but you didn’t want to crush their spirits. But they managed to get the majority of the council on their side and a police security team as well. The idea of Lin and the other metalbenders being there made you feel a little more comfortable with the match still happening. Bolin told the story so animatedly, you can’t really see any other council members or Mako reacting with the amount of drama he was laying on, but you couldn’t help but laugh as he told it. He was waving his arms about and giving each person their own voice and facial expression, and Mako would add corrections now and then, all very chaotic and entertaining.   
“I’m glad you guys still get to play! I was worried I’d find you both depressed, or even worse you three out trying to do something stupid.”  
Bolin looks absolutely scandalized, and Mako cocks an eyebrow up at you.   
“Stupid? Like what? When have we ever done something stupid?’  
Mako puts his face in his hands as you look baffled at Bolin.  
“I thought, worst case scenario, you three were out trying to hunt Amon down by yourselves. And do you really want me to list every single time the two of you have done something stupid and dangerous? Something like, say, joining up with the Triple Threats? Not once or twice but three whole times?”  
Bolin looks away sheepishly.  
“Right…”  
“But! I’m glad to see you both okay, Mako you should go see Asami and let her know you’re safe. I’m gonna head back home, help with the store. Feel free to come by for dinner later, dad’s cooking as always.”  
You stand, and head home, Mako grabbing his things and following suite.  
“And I’m gonna go see Asami.”  
“Wait! You’re both leaving? What am I gonna do?”  
Mako turns to Bolin.  
“Maybe clean the apartment?”  
Bolin lets out an exaggerated groan, and several seconds later, he sets his puppy dog eyes at you.   
“Well, I guess you could come and hang at the shop?”  
He jumps and cheers, and follows you out of the apartment. Outside the gym Mako parts from the group and then it's you and Bolin alone. He talks excitedly about the championship, arms waving and exaggerated facial expressions. He helps around the shop while you work, keeps you company and makes you laugh while you paint, and when your dad finishes dinner the three of you eat together.

You breathe in the nighttime air as you and Asami drive to the gym for the match, your face smeared with the fire ferrets team colors red and orange. You offer the paint pots to Asami.  
“Sure you don’t want to rep the team?”  
“My fathers company is on their uniforms, I don’t know how much louder I can be about whose team I’m for! Plus it’d clash with my make up.”  
You can see why she wouldn’t want her makeup messed up, she looks gorgeous. She always looks gorgeous but sometimes you have to take a second and appreciate that someone like her would want to be your friend. She let you borrow some of her clothes for tonight, her red wardrobe matching your paint better than your blue and green one, and Spirits this FABRIC. It feels like you’re wearing air, and going back to your normal clothes is going to suck for sure. The car pulls up and as you both walk in, you notice just how many metal benders are here, can’t look in any direction for more than ten seconds without spotting one. You separate from Asami to go and see the team before joining her in the box, and pass Tenzin and Lin as they talk/argue. You reach the equipment room and find Bolin talking to Pabu nervously.  
“... I believe in you buddy, it’s okay to be nervous.”  
You lean over his shoulder right next to his ear.  
“And I believe in you!”  
Bolin shrieks and scrambles away for a moment, until he sees it's just you and jumps back up trying to catch his breath.   
“Y/N! I wasn’t scared!”  
You grin at him and give him an affirmative noise in a tone that drips in sarcasm. Bolin puffs his chest slightly and brushes himself off.  
“Sorry, I’m just on edge. Championship plus Amon, yikes you know? But I’m glad you came!”  
He grabs you in a large hug, lifting you an inch or two off the ground, and your heart flutters.  
“Of course I came! I’ve never missed a game and I’m not about to start!”  
“I know, just didn’t know, with Amon…”  
“Bolin this place has more cops than it does fans, what’s gonna happen?”  
“You’re right, you’re right.”  
You take this chance to ruffle his hair playfully, definitely not an excuse to run your fingers through his hair. You’ve felt his hair before but it is so soft. Like turtle duckling feathers, fluffy.   
“So where’s Mako and Korra?”  
Just as you asked Mako walks into the equipment room.  
“Hey! Why aren’t you sitting with Asami?”  
“Just wanted to see you guys and say good luck before I headed over there is all, I’m guessing you just came from the box?”  
He averts his eyes and blushes lightly.  
“No need to be embarrassed, she’s your girlfriend, of course you’d go see her! I’m glad I don’t have a girl in the stands, I’d probably get nailed in the face more!”  
Bolin laughs, and you kinda chuckle along with him. Oblivious as always.  
“So Mako, where’s Korra, aren't you guys about to start?”  
“Oh I think I saw her talking to Tenzin in the hallway.”  
“Okay cool, I’m gonna wish her luck before the match starts, kick their asses!”  
You high five both of them and head to the hallway where Korra is just finishing her conversation with Tenzin, and you manage to catch her attention. Her eyes light up and she rushes over to you and bear hugs you just like Bolin did, just higher, and you can't help but laugh.  
“Y/N! I love the paint!”  
“Thanks! Gotta rep the team! I’d offer paint but I left the paint pots in Asami’s car.”  
Her energy falls for a moment before hastily picking it back up. She sits you back down on the ground.  
“Well, next time!”  
“Totally! Well, good luck out there!”  
And you high five her too before running to get to the box before the game starts. You hear the announcer start talking as you run through the corridors.  
“The anticipation is palpable as we are just moments away from the championship match!”  
You turn a corner and slow down, you’ve never walked through this area without Asami so you try to look like you belong.  
“Will the Wolfbats' ferocity help them repeat as champs?”  
After some stumbling you manage to find the box, but when you walk in you see your usual seat filled by Asami’s dad. You stop so fast you almost trip over yourself. They both turn in their seat to look at you. Asami mouths an apology and shrugs, just as confused as you.  
“Oh hello! I’m sorry I-”  
He stops you mid apology.  
“No worries! I believe this is more your seat than mine, I’m glad it’s been getting some use! I’ll go and see if I can procure another chair for myself, please take your seat.”   
He exits the box and you slowly take his seat, raising an eyebrow at Asami.  
“Y/N, I am so sorry! I had no idea he was coming tonight!”  
“It’s all good! No worries, if I really had to I can always go sit in the equipment room like I used to.”  
The lights all fall and center onto the Ring Announcer as he walks onto the center stage, the crowd already in uproar before he can even begin to speak. His arms are up in a flourish, and then he gestures dramatically to one side of the arena.  
“Introducing the challengers, the Future Industries Fire Ferrets!”  
Our team comes onto the scene and the crowd cheers, specifically a concentrated section of girls dressed in mock uniforms and the team's colors. Asami winks and blows a kiss to Mako, a gesture surprisingly returned. Unsurprisingly Korra looks disgusted, but you’re still shocked at the weirdly out of character show of public affection from Mako, is he sick? You’re so confused you almost don’t notice Bolin brought Pabu onto the platform. You definitely don't notice Hiroshi bring his new chair in and sit down. Bolin gives Pabu a signal, and Pabu scurries forward and does some of his signature tricks, finishing off by landing and staying on one paw. You can’t hear Bolin but you see his cheer for Pabu. The Ring Announcer cheers as well, and the gestures to the opposite side.  
“And their opponents, the three timed defending champions, the White Falls Wolfbats!”  
The Wolfbats strut out onto the platform dressed in bat masks and draped in purple capes, and once they reach their side they open their capes, revealing them to be wing shaped. They give out loud howls as small fireworks go off and the crowd cheers. The Fire Ferret section, including you and Asami, follow their cheers with boos. The crowd is so loud, no one can hear Bolin’s attempted howl, but you can see the action and can’t help but laugh. An absolute dork. Tahno and his team mates shed their ridiculous costumes as the two teams get to their starting places. The radio announcer begins his coverage, and the bell goes off. Tahno is the first to move, hitting Korra with water blasts, and Mako gets hit by four earth disks which sends him back to zone two, but Bolin is able to land a hit against one of the other team members. The match has barely begun but the match looks even, it could really go either way. Tahno then sprays Bolin all the way to zone three, a blatant foul. But you’re standing in rage when the referees refuse to call it, Mako tries to talk to them but they stick to their call and the match moves on. As the match goes on, the Woldbats tricks get dirtier and dirtier, blatantly revealing the refs have been paid off somehow. Tahno even pulls out ice moves, which is not a foul, but a spit-in-the-face rule break. It starts to look like an easy win for the Wolfbats, but Korra manages to save it right at the end, taking the match into a round two.   
“What the FUCK was that?!”  
You yell and gesture in anger, and turn to complain to Asami, and see her dad also sitting there, having returned when you weren’t paying attention. You immediately shut up and sit back down in your seat.  
“My apologies sir.”  
You can not believe you just swore in front of Asami’s dad. Good job idiot.

The team exits the huddle they’d been in, and the round two bell goes off. And just like the round before, the Wolfbats continue to cheat and the referees continue to be blinder than real wolfbats. They pull ice shots and headshots and all kinds of bullshit, but the Fire Ferrets keep up and stay clean, fighting on until the bell rings. Despite the dirty moves, the second round sits at a tie. A referee flips a coin, and the fire ferrets choose the element for the tie-breaker. Korra takes her chance, and chooses to take on Tahno one on one. You don’t need to see his face to know Tahno is talking trash, not that he talks anything else. Korra fakes him out and lands a solid uppercut with a water blast, taking Tahno out quickly. The entire crowd was in shock, even fire ferret fans didn’t expect one of the reigning champion wolfbats to lose so quickly. You smile watching the team celebrate the win.   
One more round to decide the championship, it’s tied and you are not so figuratively biting your nails. The wolfbats don’t even wait before cheating, the bell rings and it’s dirty moves straight out of the gate. Even with all the cheating it had looked like they were on even ground until this match, but the Wolfbats really start turning up the heat and it looks more and more like Korra and the boys just aren’t gonna be able to make it. But it all topples over when Tahno starts throwing water with rocks inside it around. That particularly nasty trick sends all three into the drink, ending the match with a win for the Wolfbats. Referee declares the knockout and the crowd goes crazy, anger and happiness all mixed into one giant unintelligible roar. You sink into your seat, handling your disappointment before going to console the team. But as you look out into the chaos of the crowd, something catches your eye.  
An Equalist Mask.  
And another and another and another. In the midst of it all, they’d been hiding, waiting and watching and armed. This is what they wanted, and even the police had been too distracted to notice. And suddenly every cop in the room was unconscious, taken out with quick precision, planned so cleanly that people directly next to them didn’t even notice. And now it was too late. People begin panicking, and you start to try and set eyes on Bolin and the others, before remembering their fall into the water. You turn to run out into the chaos, and find an Equalist with his electric fist weapons standing in your way, seemingly guarding the entrance to the box keeping the three of you here. He doesn’t speak, but he gestures back out towards the arena, and you turn to look. Tahno and the Wolfbats stand there confused. The center of the arena begins moving and Amon and a small group of Equalists rise from the center. Tahno seems to yell at the referee for answers, and is met with the same amount of confusion. The three of them begin to back away towards the edge of the platform as Amon approaches. As the group gets closer you’re able to get bits of their conversation, Tahno putting on a brave face.  
“All right, you want a piece of the Wolfbats? Here it comes!”  
If you weren’t so worried, you’d roll your eyes at the false bravado. Tahno throws the first hit, launching a blast of water at Amon, which is easily side stepped. They are quickly overtaken by Amon and his team as they side step bending attacks and apprehend each Wolfbat. The now subdued Wolfbats lie on the floor of the arena as two Equalists grab Tahno and begin what looks like presenting him to Amon. Tahno must have heard of Amon’s reputation, as he begins to wiggle and fight against his captors with panic and fear visible in not only his body language but his expression, and the lift in his voice as he begs for mercy.   
“Wait please don’t do this! I’ll give you the championship ot, I- I’ll give you everything just please please don’t take my bending!”  
For something so monumental and life changing it happens in the blink of an eye, with one swift motion Tahno’s bending is gone. There’s irony in that, karma perhaps, but you can’t think about that right now. All you can feel is fear and a little nausea. You can’t imagine losing your bending, how painful that has to be, physically, emotionally, or otherwise. You watch as they kick the Wolfbats over the edge into the water. The room begins to fill with Equalist banners, and Equalists begin to move around the arena, setting up a microphone for Amon. You ready yourself for another Amon speech.  
“I believe I have your attention, benders of Republic City. So, once again, the Wolfbats are your pro-bending champions. It seems fitting that you celebrate three bullies who cheated their way to victory because every day, you threaten and abuse your fellow nonbending citizens just like the Wolfbats did to your opponents tonight.”  
He points out into the crowd.  
“Those men were supposedly the best in the bending world and yet it only took a few moments for me to cleanse them of their impurity. Let this be a warning to all of you benders out there, if any of you get in my way you will face the same fate. Now, to my followers. For years the Equalists have been forced to hide in the shadows, but now we have the numbers and the strength to create a new Republic City. I’m happy to tell you that the time for change has finally come. Very soon, the current tyrannical bending regime will be replaced by a fair-minded Equalist government. You and your children will no longer have to walk the streets afraid! It’s time to take our city back.”  
You’re stuck here and can’t do anything, and can only hope and plead that your friends are okay. Your mind drifts to your dad suddenly, the last time Amon had a party the shop got vandalized. The shop means so much to your dad, he would 100% do something stupid trying to protect it if something more than paint were to go down. You have to find a way out.  
“For centuries, benders have possessed an unnatural advantage over ordinary people. But thankfully, modern technology has provided us with a way to even out the playing field.”  
The Equalists in the crowd, including the one behind you, spark their electrical gloves. Just to show off and intimidate no doubt, but it simply reminds you of the gloves' existence, letting you add that detail to your escape plan.   
“Now anyone can hold the power of a chi blocker in their hand. My followers and I will not rest until the entire city achieves equality, and once that goal is achieved, we will equalize the rest of the world. The revolution has begun!”  
Amon raises his fist to the sky, and something begins breaking all the glass from the ceiling of the arena, a perfect distraction. You have a split second to enact your plan, and you hop to action. You go to waterbend his legs out from underneath them, but the last thing you see is his electric glove headed for your arm. And then, darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm sorry for lack of updates over the winter break, holidays had me busy. But! Good news on my end, I have a boyfriend now! He's been amazing and he helped me find motivation for this again, as well as your guys' comments! Knowing other people besides me like this is really cool and I'm gonna keep trying to get more of it on here, I won't abandon it! Thank you guys so much and I hope you liked this chapter!


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